Neighbors
by HTFan
Summary: (AU/Human) After moving into a new town, Flaky is met with a man that lives just across the street from her home. With rumors surrounding the man as someone dangerous, has Flaky moved next door to a quiet yet gentle man, or someone far worse? (A darkish FlippyXFlaky fic; Rated M for future chapters with blood, violence, lemons, and perverted yandere Flippy)
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

 _ **DISCLAIMER: 'Happy Tree Friends' is owned by Mondo Media, not me. This fiction is written for entertainment purposes only and is completely non-profit.**_

 _ **WARNING: This story will contain language and disturbing scenes of violence, including blood and gore, torture, as well as sexual content. Read at your discretion!**_

 _ **Author's Note: Well it looks like I'm doing this. While initially I was reluctant to post this, but after some consideration, I've decided to make this story be released publicly. This is actually a first for me, writing something that could be as dark as this (especially down the road), but I hope it'll turn out well and you all enjoy it!**_

* * *

She could not describe the feelings her heart and mind were experiencing this very moment. From excitement to fear, from joy to horror, from curious to questioning, and happiness to depression. As her hands grasped the steering wheel of her car gently and keeping her attentive eyes on the road ahead, the small and young redhead looked at the upcoming hill and could only imagine what lied beyond it.

The redhead, who went by the name of Flaky due to the unwanted quantities of white dandruff in long hair that seemed to never go away, was eager and scared to see what her new home would look like. Being at an age of maturity and feeling ready to take on her own challenges, she decided it was long due to go out and spread her wings, to enter the adult world she both longed and feared for.

She already felt the terrible sting of being homesick, missing the comforts her lovely mother and father bestowed her, and fear of what lied in her future, but thankfully, the town she found had a small yet nice and affordable home conveniently placed next to an old friend from the past. At least with that thought in mind, she would not be so alone in this new and strange town.

Flaky's heart was beating rapidly as she now found herself atop the small hill before the town ahead, and stared in awe at her new home.

It wasn't an enormous city like the others in the north east, but still a populated one. She saw many structures, from small homes to even large business towers. She could see a significant amount of activity in the streets near the center of the town, and was quickly searching for where her own home lied.

Before she drove any further, she looked to her left to see a wooden sign, decorated and crafted elegantly, with the words ' _Welcome to Happy Tree Town_ ' carved in front of it. She giggled at the odd name, looking out to indeed notice the abundance of trees surrounding the town, and wondered if the citizens were indeed happy.

Flaky took a deep breath in, nodded her head, and looked forward down the road once more, driving carefully to make sure she didn't face an accident before reaching her home.

"Alright, Flaky, you're almost to your new home. You can do this, Flaky. You're a strong woman and can do this now. Just stay calm, follow each step one at a time, and be confident. This is your new home now, and you'll make the best of it."

Trying to keep herself calm by constantly speaking to herself in the car, Flaky failed to realize she had almost drove right pass her own home. Looking up with her eyes widened, Flaky came to a sudden stop, her tires almost making a screeching sound on the asphalt.

Once at a complete stop, Flaky brought her car window down and peered out of it, to have a clear view of her new home. She let her white teeth show as she smiled widely, admiring the small little home of hers. It was not the most elegant as the ones down the street, but it would serve its purpose for the time being. Besides, a little touches here and there can come a long way and turn this small home into the best place she could live in.

Excitement feeling her mind, Flaky pulled up to the driveway and parked her car, swiftly but carefully exiting her car and closing the car door behind her. She leaned back on her car as she looked at the entrance and the exterior of the front side of her house, sighing happily as she admired every inch of it.

"My God, Flaky?! Is that you?!"

Flaky jolted as she spun around to see a lovely sight she was hoping to see upon her arrival to her new home. It was a young woman, around the same age as Flaky, only a tad shorter, and featured long pink hair. She had the widest smile on her face as she came running over to meet with Flaky.

Flaky, excited to see a long-time friend, ran around her car and met up with her friend, reaching her arms out and giving her a tight and warm welcoming hug.

"Oh Giggles, it's so great to see you again!"

Giggles made a tiny giggle, something she always did, as she returned the hug with one of her own. "I knew you were coming, I just didn't expect you to come here so soon!"

Flaky let go of Giggles, keeping a shy looking smile as she brought her hands to meet together in front of her. "Well… I was just excited to see my new home that I just had to leave early and see it for myself."

Giggles nodded her head as she looked at Flaky's new home. "And you picked out a nice one, Flaky. With just a few added touches, it'll be perfect in no time." She faced Flaky again, keeping her wide smile as she prevented herself from hopping with joy. "And it's right next to mine! Oh, isn't this great?! We got so much to catch up on!"

Flaky looked down for a bit, her face showing a touch of sadness in her eyes. "Yeah… we do…"

Giggles dropped her smile as she tilted her head, a confused expression showing on her face. "Flaky, what's wrong?"

Flaky didn't look up to Giggles, though she did shake her head as she sighed sadly. "I-I am just a little scared… and homesick, I guess."

Giggles made a quiet giggle to herself as she hugged Flaky lightly. "Oh, don't worry Flaky. Stay here a few days and you'll get used to it real soon. Besides, you have me here, and I'll be happy to show you around town and everything. I'll make sure you will feel right at home here."

Flaky looked up to Giggles and gave her a shy smile. "Thank you, Giggles."

Giggles broke the hug and nodded her head. "No problem, Flaky."

Feeling a little better thanks to her friend's reassuring hug, Flaky looked around from where she stood and observed the other nearby houses one by one. "So, besides you, who else lives around here?"

Giggles brought her right hand to her chin and looked out down the street, looking at each house and remembering who the owner of them was. When her mind finally remembered the names of the occupants, she pointed her right index finger out to each one and named the person individually.

"Well, let's see. Right across from my house is Petunia. She's very nice and everything… just be sure to stay nice and clean when you meet her. Then there's Handy, the head of construction here. Doesn't really build anymore since the accident he had, though he knows how to fix everything. Then there's Sniffles; just your usual nerd guy. Lumpy, Nutty, and Mole live further down the road, each having their own little… things that make them unique."

Flaky crossed her arms as she looked at Giggles with a concerned look. "Are… those their real names?"

Giggles shook her head with a smile. "Of course not, though everyone in this town loves to give each other names based on a trait that makes them special, you know, nicknames. People kind of like it here, so we just call each other by it. Kind of like how we call each other by little names. You'll get used to it."

"I guess… "

Giggles looked back down the street again and pointed out her right index finger. "Okay, just down further the road is possibly the greatest guy I have ever met. People like to call him Cuddles, and he's… he is just amazing."

Flaky could see Giggles blushing lightly and smiled at her. "You two… getting along together?"

Giggles shrugged her shoulders with a shy look. "We're taking it slow, but yeah, I think we're doing great with each other."

"You know why he's called Cuddles?"

Giggles only looked at Flaky with her eyebrows rising up and down as she gave a slow nod to her. Flaky's face turn red as she looked forward down the road again. "Alright, forget I asked that."

Giggles let out a small laugh as she looked back down the road. "And… and that should do it for here. I honestly think every one of them is very nice, and you get to know them long enough, will become really great friends. Everyone here is so nice and helpful, and I'm so glad you came here."

She nudged Flaky's shoulder as she brought her nodded her head. "And maybe, just maybe, you might find someone… very interesting here just for you."

Flaky blushed again as she shyly looked away from Giggles. "Oh come on, don't be like that. You know I'm not interested yet. I just got here and I'd like to settle down for a bit before meeting up with someone."

Giggles shrugged her shoulders. "Fair enough. But seriously, Flaky, there are plenty of guys here I think would be very interested in you. You should try to get out there and find someone nice, especially here."

"I'll think about it."

As the two went silent, Flaky looked across from her own home and noticed something that caught her attention. Though the longer she stared at it, she could not help but get a sense of fear striking her heart, feeling a terrible aura of horror surrounding her.

Across from her own home was another one, small like hers, but far from as good in quality. It was dark looking on the outside, obviously old in appearance and in heavily need of repairs. The grass on the lawn out front did not look as green as the other homes, and the look of it just gave a frightening feeling to those who happened to stumble upon it.

Flaky pointed her right index finger at it while getting Giggles' attention. "Giggles… who lives in that?"

Giggles looked across the other side of the road to notice the same house Flaky was looking at. She stared at it with a blank look and spoke calmly. "Oh, that house? It's just some lonely man that doesn't go out much."

Flaky looked at Giggles curiously. "Why? Who is he?"

"Don't really know that much… no one does, actually. He is some retired Army veteran that fought for about a year or two before suddenly showing up, and now he just secludes himself in that home, only coming out when he absolutely needs to."

"What's his name?"

"People like to call him Flippy."

The name, Flippy, somehow brought chills down Flaky's spine. Her body shook a little as she kept her eyes on the dark house across hers. "W-Why do people call him Flippy?"

Giggles shrugged her shoulders. "Beats me. The man was here before I got here, and whenever I asked people who he was, they just said his name was Flippy and I should stay away from him as far as I can."

Flaky's eyes widened in horror as she heard Giggles make that statement. A strange man, whom everyone told to stay away from, was living right next to her own home. She couldn't live any closer to a feared man then she could now, and was feeling that she may have brought herself into a terrible situation.

Giggles shook her head as she noticed her friend having a panic attack. "Oh don't worry about it, Flaky. I'm sure people are just joking. He can't be THAT scary or anything. Nah, I think he's just a lonely man that prefers to stay by himself. Feel kind of sorry for him, actually. Though really, don't worry about it. You're safe, Flaky."

Flaky nodded her head as she kept her eyes on the house, her mind still running through multiple scenarios that only made her feel complete terror in her hearts. "A-Alright…"

Giggles smile and nodded her head. "Well, I'll let you get back to settling in to your new home. I'm sure the moving truck will be here any moment, so that should keep your mind off any troubling thoughts. Remember, I'm right next door, so just come by if you need something. Oh, and tomorrow, if you're not doing anything, come meet me and I'll show you around town, get you settled in!"

Giggles waved with a smile on her face. Flaky returned the gesture by waving her hand slowly, placing a fake smile on her face as she still could feel horrified of the house next door. She sighed and shook her head, reaching into her pocket and pulling out her new house keys.

"Keep it together, Flaky. I'm sure he is a nice man that just prefers to be quiet. Everything is fine. Everything will be fine, you'll see."

She made it up to her front door and carefully unlocked it, opening slowly and revealing the interior of her two-floor home. The sight of it brought a smile back to Flaky's face, feeling relaxed and happy once more. Flaky placed the keys back into her pocket and proceeded to enter her home, excited to explore and see how she will be spending the many years ahead of her.

As she attempted to bring the door to a close, something inside her made her stop. She looked down curiously at the floor, having the odd feeling clouding her brain. Without second thought, Flaky peered at the opening of her front door to see what was outside.

Her eyes widened in horror as she slammed the door shut, locking it instantly and placing her hand to her chest, preventing her heart from beating out of her chest. The sight she saw scared to the point of near death, and was starting to wonder if leaving her original home was the biggest mistake she ever made.

And perhaps the last one she will ever make. For what she saw across from her made her want to leave and never turn back.

Just across the street, peaking out of the dark window of the old house, were a pair of two yellow eyes, staring straight at her.

"Oh dear God, please protect me…"

* * *

While still feeling uneasy after yesterday's rather frightening welcome, Giggles was indeed right that moving in all of her belongings kept Flaky's mind clear of the dreadful sight of two murderous looking yellow eyes peering out of a window and looking at her. The moment the truck came by made Flaky forget the whole ordeal and feel nice and safe in her new home.

Today would be an even better way to distract herself from any unwanted thoughts as, promised by Giggles, she will be seeing the many sights that make her new home a place worth talking about. She could feel that same rush of excitement and fear she had just coming to her own home. Now she will see the world that surrounds it for the first time.

Though a bit picky today on what to wear on this cool spring morning, rummaging through her clothes and making herself look as nice as possible to give a good presentation to the new people she will call friends, Flaky ended up going with her well-tailored red dress that matched perfectly with her red hair that was brushed nicely. She sadly couldn't remove all the flakes from a warm morning shower, but still more presentable than yesterday.

Flaky took one last look at herself in the mirror in her bedroom and nodded her head with an eager smile, feeling confident and ready to go outside. She grabbed her purse and headed outside in an instant, though reacting quickly to turn around and lock the door on her way out. After making sure the door was shut tight, she placed the house key in her purse and turned around to see a friendly face looking out of a car window.

"Hey, Flaky! All ready to go and meet the town?"

Giggles sat on the driver's side of her car, waving Flaky over with a wide smile on her face like always. Flaky nodded her head and proceeded to walk towards the car, excited to ride with her friend and see the town.

But she came to a sudden stop as she looked beyond Giggle's car, and her eyes were met with the sinister house across the street. She stood paralyzed, her body motionless as her eyes examined every inch of the exterior. She stared at the window, noticing the yellow eyes she found yesterday were absent. Sadly, this still did not stop her having a dreadful feeling that made her want to turn back and seclude herself in the safety of her own home.

Though was her own home even enough to protect her?

Giggles pressed the horn button on her steering wheel, making a loud beep sound and causing Flaky to jolt to attention. "Flaky, you okay, dear?"

Flaky looked at Giggles quickly and nodded her head rapidly. "Y-Y-Yes, I… thought I saw something…"

Giggles shook her head with a laugh. "Oh, Flaky, you worry too much. Come on, we got a whole town to explore today!"

Flaky smiled and walked around Giggles' car, entered the front passenger seat, and carefully placed the seatbelt over her. Once she was settled in, she nodded her head towards Giggles, and the two went off to the downtown sections of Happy Tree Town.

The trip into town was a pleasant one, and went by without any trouble of the sort. Though the usual busyness of the traffic had Giggles a little aggravated at times, the two both enjoyed the trip into town viewing every notable sight in town. Flaky got a clear look at the many stores to purchase from, some outside views of the tall towers in the center of town, see places of recreation, including the center park, ate out at one of the restaurants, got to converse with some of the friendly people, and overall had an exciting experience of seeing the town as a whole.

It was good timing as well, as the entire trip acted as a big distraction for Flaky to feel at ease in the town. Having a nice chat and group activity with Giggles was just the thing Flaky needed to enjoy this day, and hopefully a sign for more to come and feel satisfied in her choice of moving to Happy Tree Town.

Though it would be a lie if she said she never thought of this man called Flippy once. Giggles description of the man, someone to stay away from as far as they can, just wasn't the kind of description she needed as someone she will have to call her next door neighbor. Those yellow eyes she saw… was that him? And is he as bad as the people portray him to be?

With all of the time spent in town and moments thinking of the mysterious man, Flaky forgot to check the time, and noticed on the car's onboard clock that it was far into the afternoon, the Sun heading towards the horizon and emitting an evening orange glow in the sky.

Giggles could she the shock look on Flaky's face, and too realized how late it was getting. "Oh dear, it seems we've been enjoying ourselves a little too much today." She giggled as Flaky brought a smile on her face, still enjoying the time they spent together today.

As they came to a stop at one of the town's intersections, Giggles pointed to a small nearby store and gestured her head to it. "Is it okay I pick a few things up before we go back? Won't take long and you can pick something too if you want."

Flaky shrugged her shoulders while keeping a shy smile on her face. "Sure. I don't have a problem with that."

"Great! It'll only be a few minutes."

As the traffic light turned green, Giggles drove the car to the small parking lot out front of the store, and parked it carefully as close as possible to the doors as she could. Once placed in park, the two women exited the vehicle and proceeded to enter the store quickly, with the intent to purchase only the necessary items and leave to return home.

With Giggles having her own plan to buy the stuff she needed, Flaky and Giggles decided to split up to opposite directions of the store. While Giggles had a few items on mind to purchase, there was nothing in particular of interest Flaky was concerned on buying. Instead, she took the time to just observe and wait patiently walking around the store.

It was a sort of small market, or grocery store with some other purchasable goods. There was plenty of food for purchasing, including fresh produce and food that was both canned and frozen, and quite reasonable in pricing. There was even a small flora section having a small sale on a variety of flowers. Finding an interest on the sale, Flaky quickly walked over to the section and carefully examined each set of flowers.

She smiled as she smelled the sweet aroma coming from the flowers, all natural and freshly cut, and seemed to be kept nice and watered. It was perfect for the spring time setting of the year, and would be nice to have by her window with natural lighting.

Flaky placed her right hand on her chin, and smiled as her eyes met with some beautiful red flowers. There was just something about the color of red that interested her so, and thus, was an instant purchase for her. She picked up the bouquet of the red flowers, and turned around to meet up with Giggles.

She was caught off guard, though, when she collided with a man standing behind her. She dropped the bouquet of flowers and lost her footing, almost tripping backwards onto the cold hard floor. Thankfully, she was kindly caught by the man she accidentally bumped into.

Flaky rubbed her head and gave a shy laugh. "I'm sorry, sir. I… I…"

She opened her eyes and looked up, and almost felt her heart come to an instant stop.

The man, who was currently holding her right now, was tall with a muscular figure, his hair a light green color with military clothing as his choice of attire. He was looking down at her, his face expressionless as his eyes kept their attention on her. The man kept a light grip on Flaky as he stood silently watching her. It was all terrifying to her.

But what scared her the most was those ominous yellow eyes that were staring straight into her crimson eyes.

Without hesitation, Flaky quickly screamed and pushed herself away from the man, instantly getting out of his grasp and making a dash through the store to escape his presence. As she headed for the exit, Giggles, who was carrying a couple of bags with purchased goods, stood in confusion as she watched a frightened Flaky run outside.

"Flaky?! Where are you going?!"

Flaky did not bother to respond, nor care about the fact she left the flowers on the floor back at the store. The man she saw had to be the one living next to her, and those eyes were just as frightening up close then they were a far distance away.

Perhaps her paranoia was getting to her, but she just couldn't help but be afraid of this man. She felt unsafe in his presence, and being told to stay away from him only made her believe he was a dangerous man. He had to be... right?

Despite the thought, she was completely scared and all she wanted to do was hide. Flaky knew her home was not far from here, and ignored the idea of waiting for Giggles to drive her back. She had to go home now, and hide there until she felt safe again.

It felt like forever, but Flaky was able to retreat back to the safety of her home again, still safe and sound on its side of the neighborhood. She quickly reached for her keys in her purse and opened the door instantly, entering the home and closing the door behind her. She locked the door as fast as she could, and leaned her back against the door.

Flaky dropped her purse and brought her hand to her chest, still feeling her heartbeat going at an abnormal rate. Her breaths were rapid and was feeling woozy from the lack of oxygen due to the fear going through her mind.

She closed her eyes and shook her head, trying to stand up tall while attempting to keep herself calm.

"It's okay now, Flaky. You're home now, Flaky. You're safe. No one can get to you here. Everything will be-"

Flaky jumped back and landed on her posterior on the wooden floor as the doorbell rang right behind her. Her eyes opened widely as she stared at the door, crawling back a short distance until she heard a calm voice on the other side.

"Flaky? You in there? Please come out, I want to talk to you."

The sound of Giggles' voice relaxed her somewhat, and was recalling that she did leave her alone back at the store without giving her a reason. It was rather rude of her, in fact, and knew, as her friend, should explain to her what happen. Perhaps she may even help her.

Standing back up onto her feet, Flaky brushed herself off and tried to bring her hair to a smooth position again, the frantic running messing it up a bit. She walked to the door and unlocked it, placing her hand on the doorknob and opening it slowly.

"Giggles, I'm so sorry for what I did. I just…"

Flaky saw a smile on Giggles' face, which gave Flaky a brief second of hope and happiness, and even a touch of security. That sense of security, though, would be removed instantly, as she turned slightly to the right to be met with the same terrible sight she saw only a few moments ago.

Giggles gestured her hands to the person next to her, and gave Flaky a warm smile.

"Flaky, I would like you to kindly meet your neighbor, Flippy!"

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 _ **Author's Note: You know, trying to mix horror and romance here isn't exactly the easiest task for someone like me. Thankfully, with a couple like Flippy and Flaky, it'll be an interesting turnout down the road, and wonder exactly what will happen between the two. There will be probably be only two more chapters, three at most, but I'll keep on writing and see where this goes!**_

 _ **For now, I hope you enjoyed the first chapter! Leave a review and tell me what you think, favorite or follow if you liked it, and I'll be back with more!**_


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

 _ **Author's Note: WOW! Just... just wow! The amount of support for this story has been... just amazing! With all the nice words you guys have given me, it actually hurts me to think I have kept you waiting this long for a chapter (especially since I am revising it to be much longer than I originally intended). I apologize for making you all wait even after the massive support, but I finally have been able to make some progression for this story and I am ready to share it with all of you, my fellow readers!**_

 _ **I really like say thank you all for the support and kind words, and now I hereby grant you access to Chapter 2!**_

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Flaky was petrified at the very sight of her own friend, Giggles, introducing the most terrifying man in town to her own home. Her legs trembled violently as she stared at the tall figure, looking down at her with the ominous emerald glow in his eyes.

Her breaths were rapid and heavy as her grip on the door handle tightened. All she wanted to do right now was slam the door shut, run to her room upstairs, and hide for the remainder of the day in the confinements of her home.

But she knew it was too late to run and hide now as Giggles cleared her throat, attracting Flaky's attention. Giggles gestured her eyes to Flippy, who stood impatiently while staring directly at Flaky, his hands placed behind his back.

"Well… Flaky, aren't you going to say hello to your lovely neighbor here?"

Observing Giggles' face, Flaky knew she was, deep down, furious at her, and if she didn't comply with her, was bound to get into an angry rant at her later. Thus, with as much courage as she could muster, she looked up to Flippy and placed a forced smile on her face, speaking as calmly as she could while trying not to show her fear towards him.

"H-Hello, Flippy… I-I-It's nice to see you."

Flippy remained silent as he nodded his head towards her, his dark eyes staying open and refusing to blink even once. A small smirk grew on his face as he made a silent chuckle, which didn't seem to make Flaky feel any better at the sight of him.

Giggles nudged Flippy's right arm, instantly grabbing his attention. Giggles smiled widely as she nudged his arm one more time. "So Flippy, wasn't there something you wanted to give Flaky?"

Flaky gave Giggles a frightened look. A gift? From this man? What kind of gift would he possibly give her?! The last person she would want a gift from was someone looking like him, and was preparing herself to run if needed.

Flippy nodded his head again as he spoke in a deep voice, his right arm moving slowly. "Yes… I do have something for you, Flaky…"

Flaky watched Flippy's arm move slowly outward, noticing through his green army coat the strength it had. Her mind ran multiple thoughts of what could be in his hand: a weapon, a gun, a knife?! She didn't want any of that.

She shook her head as she laughed nervously. "Oh, you don't have to- AHHH!"

Flaky screamed loudly in horror as Flippy suddenly brought his arm straight out in front of him. She closed her eyes tightly and braced her body while shivering in fear for the sharp blade that was in his hand, preparing for her painful death at the hands of this man…

"Um… Flaky?"

The sound of Giggles' confused tone in her voice made Flaky seized her body from shaking, and calmed down her rapid breaths as she realized her body did not receive any stab wounds. Baffled, Flaky opened her eyes while standing tall again, and stared in awe what was resting in Flippy's hand.

It was the bouquet of red flowers from the store she dropped earlier today. They were still neatly arranged and as bright and colorful when she picked them, and were tied together nicely.

As Flaky observed the beautiful flowers in Flippy's hand, she became more shocked as her ears picked up a new voice coming emitting from the man's mouth. Oddly, instead of the deep voice she heard first, Flippy sounded more… friendly and… even a little shy like.

"I-I, um… saw you looking at these a-and I t-thought that you would like them. So… I kind of… bought them for you. They would look nice in… you living room or something… yeah."

Flaky looked up to Flippy and became more shocked. That emerald glow in his eyes… where was it? All she saw now was a dark green iris in his eyes, and they looked at her happily.

Flippy gestured the flowers to her one more time, grabbing her attention. Flaky slowly and carefully reached out to the red flowers, and held them in her soft hands. She smiled nicely at the flowers, though was still confused by everything. Did the man just morph into something else just now, or was everything she saw just her paranoia getting to her?

As Flaky stared silently at the flowers, Giggles spoke to Flippy in a calm voice. "Flippy, why don't you wait inside Flaky's house for a bit while I talk to her?"

The moment she heard her house be brought to question snapped Flaky back to attention and brought her worried expression on her face. She shook her head and tried to speak up, but Flippy responded nicely and proceeded to walk inside Flaky's home without permission.

"Sure, Giggles. I'll just… wait in the living room…"

As Flippy walked past Flaky and marched towards the living room, Flaky's paranoia arose once more. What if he starts to break or steal her possessions, or find something to use as a weapon? She is letting in a feared man into her home; anything could happen!

Giggles tapped on Flaky's shoulder, making her jolt lightly as she spun around to face her. Flaky knew she was about to get it as Giggles' lovely smile was replaced with an annoyed and enraged one.

Flaky stood nervously and upset as Giggles prepared to voice her displeasure towards her.

"Flaky! You know how embarrassed I am because of you?! Running off and leaving me alone at the store, and just leaving Flippy standing there after you pushed him away?! He did nothing to you and all you do is scream in his face?! My God, Flaky, I am so ashamed of you right now!"

Flaky looked back and forth between the room Flippy entered and Giggles before looking down at her feet with a guilty look. She did indeed just ran off, leaving the two alone at the store after yelling in front of Flippy. Indeed she was right, Flippy did no harm to her. In fact, she helped her from falling over as well.

And her way of saying thanks was by pushing him away. The more she thought about it, the more guilty she felt and terrible for what she did.

But… the eyes of his… that stare… it was horrifying. How could she not scream in terror?

Flaky shook her head as she tried to speak back. "I'm sorry, Giggles. It's just that he-"

Giggles sighed angrily as she shook her head. "Don't apologize to me, Flaky. Apologize to Flippy. Leaving him standing there alone after he helped you was just embarrassing and rude."

"But, Giggles, he had this… this look that-"

Giggles rolled her eyes as she looked away from Flaky. "I knew it was a bad idea that I told you what people thought of him. I swear Flaky, you are so kind and sweet, but everything just seems to scare you when you really shouldn't have to be so afraid of."

Flaky looked up to Giggles, trying to make her rebuttal, though was having a hard time to make a counter statement when Giggles was indeed correct. Flaky herself knew she wasn't exactly the bravest girl around… but…

"Flaky, I will tell you, after you left us both there at the store, I went and talked to Flippy. I was a little nervous but I stood my ground and spoke to him anyway. And you know what I found out? I found out that everything that people said about him was completely wrong."

Flaky tilted her head in confusion as Giggles proceeded to talk. "Sure the man looks a little rusty around the edges, and can work a little bit on presenting himself to people, but when you talk to him, he is so kind. He can be funny, he's polite, and just overall nice. People are so wrong about him and I am feel so bad about why I never went and make a proper introduction to him."

Flaky opened her mouth before closing it, knowing she was not going to win this argument. She knew she made a mistake, a very rude one, and the guilt was now getting to her.

Giggles and Flaky remained silent for a brief moment before Giggles let out another annoyed sigh. "Flaky, seriously, the phrase 'Don't judge a book by its cover' really applies here. He does look a little… creepy, yes, but inside, he is really nice. You really should go and talk to him, apologize for what you did, and just talk. Get to know him personally, and you'll see he is really nice."

Flaky looked back at the entrance to the living room, knowing well Flippy was waiting patiently inside, completely confused of the entire situation. Maybe… maybe Flaky should go and speak to him. She hasn't even said ten words to the man, nor thank him for the flowers. The least she could do is apologize for her behavior.

With her guilt getting to her, Flaky nodded her head slowly towards Giggles. "Alright, Giggles… I'll speak to him."

Giggles crossed her arms in front of her chest and smiled. "Good. Now, you two go and make up. Be nice to him, talk to him and know him personally. Become his friend and let him feel welcomed…"

Flaky noticed Giggles forming a little funny smirk on her face, which got her attention. "What are you thinking about, Giggles?"

She shrugged her shoulders with a chuckle. "Well, maybe, just maybe, after getting to know each other for some time, perhaps you two could be… a little more than just friendly neighbors."

Flaky's face blushed intensively, her mouth dropping as she stuttered to speak. "G-G-Giggles! What are you saying?!"

"Well, maybe he just needs a woman's touch to straighten him out. Get him to look nice and be a little more open, and honestly would become quite a looker. For a retired veteran, he sure is good at keeping in shape. You're a lucky girl, Flaky, having a strong solider as a potential boyfriend!"

Flaky shook her head as she looked away shyly. "Stop it, Giggles! I barely even know him! And… and he even scares me a little."

"Then get in there and talk to him! Talk to each other, find out a thing or two, and you'll find out he is not who I said he was. I'll check on you two later, and I suspect the next time we talk, you two are at least being nice to each other!"

Flaky attempted to speak one last time, but knew there was no point as Giggles turned around and walked off back to her home. As she watched her one friend walk away, she closed the door carefully and turned around to walk into the living room.

Before entering the room, she laid her back against the wall before it, taking in a few deep breaths as she prepared herself to peek over and observe the man in the room. She didn't know what to expect him to be doing… or preparing to do. All she knew is that a strange man is in her house now and she had to talk to him.

It was scaring her senseless.

"Get a hold of yourself, Flaky. Just go in there and… talk to him. Maybe people are wrong and he is a nice guy… I hope…"

With one last inhale, Flaky peeked around the corner of the wall and got a clear view of Flippy, who was…

Curiously looking at her decorations? He wasn't searching for a weapon or stealing anything; he was actually having interest in her possessions and decorations, admiring them one by one.

As she carefully walked into the room, she was spooked by Flippy's sudden but calm response. "You have a wonderful house here, Flaky. I wish mine could only be half as excellent as yours."

A… compliment? He gave her a compliment about her house? He was being… nice?

Flaky shook the thought off as she smiled happily, placing the flowers over by the window still gently and to be placed in a vase later. "Thank you, Flippy. I… did my best to make everything neat and clean… I like it that way."

"I can see that. I apologize for not wearing more flattering clothing to match the quality here. I don't own that much in variety of apparel."

Apologies now? What kind of man that is feared to all would both make a compliment and apologize? Did Flaky and everyone else have the wrong impression this entire time?

The guilt was coming back and hitting her hard the longer she watched the man curiously walk around the house in a calm manner. He appeared as normal as any other man. So why was it, that even with his kind demeanor, she still felt an aura of darkness around him?

Seeing how Flippy was remaining quiet, and knew she had to apologize for her behavior soon, she placed her hands together in front of her and spoke calmly. "Would you… like to take a seat on the couch?"

Flippy turned around swiftly, his body jumping a little out of shock and a shy smile growing on his face. "Um… yeah, sure."

Flippy proceeded to take a seat on the nice and soft white couch as Flaky went over to the chair across from its left. As the two sat down, they stared at each other in silence, the sound of the ticking wall clock breaking the silence in the room. Flippy kept his shy looking smile as Flaky kept her watchful eyes on him.

After a few seconds of awkward silence, her guilt finally reach a boiling point, and she sighed depressingly. She looked down, placing her hands on her lap as she shook her head. "Flippy… look, I'm am terribly sorry for the way I acted today. I was just-"

"It's okay. I understand"

Flaky went silent for a moment, looking up sharply and noticing Flippy looking away from her. He stared off blankly as the smile on his face disappeared.

Sitting in a confused daze, Flaky shook her head as she leaned forward. "What did you say?"

Flippy nodded his head as he kept his eyes from looking at Flaky. "It's okay, I'm not bothered by how the way you acted today. I'm… used to that kind of reaction now."

Used to it? Flaky guessed, with an appearance like his and a dreadful rumor attached to him that would be a common reaction. Though she felt terrible to think she wasn't the first person to treat him this way.

She looked down at her feet for a moment before looking up, speaking softly. "Flippy… I-"

Flaky closed her mouth and went silent as Flippy turned his head sharply to have his dark green eyes stare into her crimson red eyes. She was startled a bit, noticing the serious expression on Flippy's face, and could even see… emotion behind his face.

Flippy spoke with a deep but calm voice. "I had a talk with Giggles, that young woman who is your friend… just after you left while I tried to follow you. She told me what she told you about me, about how people would tell her to stay away from me. She told me how you can be a little… paranoid about some things, and that you could be easily frightened. Giggles told me everything."

Flaky was a little scared and angered at how Giggles would go off and willingly talk about her, mentioning traits about her that could've staid private. Still, now that Flippy knows her fear of him, what does he intend to do to her now? She felt bad, but was scared at what his reaction would be.

He closed his eyes while nodding his head, slowly looking away. "But that's okay, though… because maybe you should be scared of me."

Flaky's eyes widened. She did not know how to react to that statement. Flippy openly admitted that she should be scared of him. She couldn't tell if she should fell sympathy for him that he thinks this way… or be even more scared of him than before.

But curiosity got control of her mind, and she calmly asked him. "W-Why should I be scared of you?"

Flippy didn't respond initially, looking off to the mounted wall clock and watching the second hand track the passing time. He took short and silent breaths, watching time go by as he remained in his thoughts.

Without looking back at Flaky, he responded. "Ever since I came back from the Army, I've always been… different. I don't know what happened, but when I came back home, I just… wasn't the same anymore. I became something… different… something that I guess people don't like."

Flaky remained silent as Flippy turned his head to face her. "I can't explain why, but sometimes… I feel like I'm someone else. I don't really feel… normal anymore. I don't have a sense of caring… or really any emotion. Sometimes I get angry easily, and I have… bad thoughts of multiple vices and sins. I have changed into something… something I can't explain… or control."

He closed his eyes as he held back a tear. "And I guess because I have changed, people have always been… afraid of me ever since. I try to talk and act nice, but people either run or try to get away from me. And now they go off and tell others that I'm some kind of… monster. No one tells me why they would ever think that about me, but they just… do. So now… I just… hide..."

Before Flaky could speak up, Flippy turned his head to face Flaky one last time. He stared deeply into her eyes, a lone tear crawling down his right cheek. He sat up straight and spoke with a calm voice, doing his best to keep his bearings.

"Flaky, I apologize for scaring you these couple of days. You do have a right to stay away or be afraid of me. I look scary, I can act scary… I'm just not a normal person like those you are used to be around with. After today… if you're still afraid of me and everything… I won't be bothered by it. I understand completely if you still feel this way."

Flippy moved his body across the seat of the couch, crawling towards Flaky slowly. Flaky leaned back on her chair slightly, feeling a little scared seeing him get closer to him but was unable to decide to get away or not. Flippy took in a deep breath of air, and nodded his head.

"But… please Flaky… I beg of you, even if you stay scared of me, I ask you that you at least never think of me as a monster. I am no monster. I am a simple person like everyone else… who is just… different. Can you at least do that for me… as a friendly neighbor?"

After sitting and listening to Flippy's depressingly speech, Flaky was paralyzed in thought. Deep down in her heart, she was crying internally for him. Every word that emitted from his mouth sound real and filled with emotion. The look in his dark-green eyes made her feel he was telling the truth with every word. She wanted to get up and give him a hug for sharing this personal information with her, and admit her faults of ever being afraid of him.

So why does she still have a sense of fear of him? Perhaps his spiel of not being the same worried her, but it felt more than that. When she looked deep into his eyes, trying to find that emerald glow she saw earlier, she could sense something… dark about him that gave her shivers down her spine. What was it about him in the inside that she was so afraid of still?

As Flaky sat quietly in her chair, giving Flippy a blank stare while she remained in her thoughts, Flippy felt worried of what Flaky was going to say to him. He looked down at his feet, which were bouncing rapidly due to anxiety, and suddenly had a smile on his face. He looked up quickly back to Flaky, keeping his eager smile on his face.

"Hey, listen, why don't we try this if you're not doing anything? Tomorrow, just before noonish, we meet up together at the park. I hear it's going to be a lovely day, temperature and all that. We can walk together, chat some more and find out more from each other. And, by the end of the day, you'll see that I am, in no way, a monster. What do you say?"

Flaky's eyes widened after Flippy asked the question. Asking her out to go on a walk together? She didn't know how to respond. She still didn't know how to feel about anything about him or what to believe. She felt happy to be asked out, yet still uneasy since it came from him. Maybe they could get to know each other… or perhaps it was a way for him to reveal this other him and get herself killed.

She couldn't risk it. She had to say no.

 _Just say no, Flaky. Say that you're busy. Say that you have better things to do. Say-_

"Sure. I'd like that!"

On the outside, Flaky was smiling happily and with joy. But inside, she was beating herself up for agreeing with Flippy's deal. Flippy, though, was ecstatic, a happy smirk forming on his face as he nodded his head.

"Great, it's a date then! We should meet up at the southern entrance of the park. If I don't get there first, just wait for me at the bench waiting out front. We will have fun, Flaky, you'll see!

Flaky opened her mouth to speak, but was interrupted as Flippy stood up and prepared to leave. "Well, I got a few things to do back home. I look forward to meeting with you again, Flaky!"

Flaky got up, still holding that forced smile on her face, and escorted Flippy to the front entrance of the house. They both stayed silent as they reached the door, with Flaky opening it slowly for him to make his exit. She watched him walk out the door and onto the first steps of the pathway leading out of her house.

Flippy then came to a sudden stop, looking outward to his house across the street. Flaky watched him curiously as he stood still in the open, doing nothing in particular.

Then, without looking back, Flippy spoke. "Hey… Flaky… I have a question for you."

Flaky tilted her head in confusion, not because of the question, but because of his voice. It was starting to deepen, almost like the first words that she heard earlier.

"What is it, Flippy?"

"You… lock your doors and windows at night, right?"

Flippy's voice was definitely deeper this time, and the question he asked brought back the fear in Flaky's heart. Her eyes widened in shock as she swallowed her throat, watching Flippy stand tall without moving his head to look at her.

"Y-Yes… I do."

Flippy chuckled lightly, placing his hands in his coat pockets. "Good… good. Don't want anyone trying to break in at night… they might try to break your stuff… or even get to you… though that never stopped anyone around here."

He turned his head to face Flaky, and she almost went into cardiac arrest as her eyes met his.

The emerald color eyes that pierced her heart. They were there again, as bright and menacing as they ever were.

He made a deep chuckle as he smiled, the look on his face scaring her as he winked his right eye to her.

"See you real soon, Flaky."

Flippy turned his head forward again and walked down the pathway and crossed the street back to his home. Flaky stood by her door, gripping the handle tightly as she watched Flippy every second before reaching his own home. She watched him turn around to look back at her, staring at her for over a second, before closing his door.

Flaky carefully closed her door and took a step back. She looked at the door blankly before moving her eyes to see the lock on the door handle. She reached out to it and locked the door.

And prayed that it would protect her.

* * *

 _ **Author's Note: Looks like Flaky is about to make friends with one odd... and rather scary neighbor! I'm sure nothing wrong will happen on their nice little 'date' in the park... or perhaps something will. Guess we'll just have to find out next time; oh boy, won't that be fun!**_

 _ **Again, thank you all for the lovely words and support. I'm sorry if this chapter was a little short, but I'll do my best to get Chapter 3 out as fast I can for all of you! As always, please leave a review and tell me what you all think, and thank you all for reading!**_

 _ **(Oh, and friendly reminder, I'm taking more small request projects if you want to see them. If you have something in mind you want me to write, from a simple oneshot, lemon or whatever you want, come and message me the details and we can talk it over. So long, my readers!)**_


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

 _ **Author's Note: Man, this chapter turned out WAY longer than I expected, but after the wait, I think you guys deserve a bigger chapter, especially with all the amazing words and support you guys have given me! It means so much to have all this lovely support, and I am glad to deliver you an entertaining story! I really hope this story lives up to all of your expectations and turns out great!**_

 _ **Now, let's see how Flippy and Flaky's first 'date' turns out here in Chapter 3!**_

* * *

"Hello? Flippy… are you here? Anyone?"

Walking around obliviously in the park, Flaky was both confused and worried as she patrolled through the inner sections of the park. No matter where she looked or how loud she spoke, she could not catch a glimpse or capture the attention of anyone.

It was, in a frighteningly sense, devoid of life.

As she continued to stroll through the park alone, she wrapped her arms around herself to keep warm as a sudden cool breeze flowed through the park. She shivered lightly as she looked up to not even see a single warming ray of the sun in the sky.

Flaky shook her head in annoyance. "Where's this nice temperature he talked about? I'd rather be inside where it's warm right now…" She looked around curiously one more time, her eyes showing a hint of fear as she continued to see the absence of people. "But still… where is everyone?"

Finally losing the energy to keep searching, Flaky found an old wooden bench in the center of the bark, its appearance showing signs of wear and tear over the years it rested there. Sighing in disbelief, she decided to wait a while longer in hopes someone will at least appear, and sat down on the old bench.

Flaky leaned back slightly, closing her eyes as she inhaled the cool air surrounding her. She tried to keep calm and let the silence of the park avoid scaring her by thinking peaceful thoughts, thoughts that made her ignore that she was in the middle of the park…

Alone…

With not a soul to be seen…

With a dark mist beginning to surround her…

Flaky opened her eyes quickly as she looked up, the silence beginning to get to her. The mist that was being formed around her became a dense fog, making it difficult to view beyond a couple of feet. She jumped to her feet and looked around quickly, still being in complete silence as she was being trapped alone in the park.

Her breaths sped up rapidly and she shook her head, her mind finally hitting a breaking point. "That's it, I don't care anymore. I'm not staying here any longer!"

She spun around swiftly and prepared to make a quick jolt out of the park, planning to head straight home and just hide there where she would be safe and protected in the confines of her walls.

But she stood paralyzed in horror, her body frozen like a solid statue as her eyes made contact with a pair of glowing emerald eyes peering through the dense fog. Her eyes widened as she could see the two golden irises approach her slowly, their menacing appearance piercing through her heart like cold daggers.

Then… she heard that voice… that one voice that echoed in the distance and snapped her out of her trance.

And made her want to flee for her life.

"Why are you leaving so soon, Flaky? We just got here? There is still so much we can do right now! Come on, you can trust me, right?"

Flaky yelled out as she turned around to run away. "NO! I don't trust you! Stay away from me!"

She looked forward and came to a complete halt, shrieking loudly as her eyes met with an additional two emerald eyes in front of her. She brought her hands up as her body began to shake in absolute horror.

"But if you stay awhile, I can show you a good reason or two why you should stay with me."

Flaky turned around and gasped as she saw more of those devilish irises surrounding her in multiple directions, each one closing in on her and trapping her where she stood. Tears ran down her face as she silently begged to be set free and be back home again.

She closed her eyes as she walked backwards. "You told me people don't trust you because you are different, that you have something you can't control. Why should I trust you?!"

Flaky heard a snicker in the distance as she slowly trailed backwards. "Because… if you don't decide to trust me…"

Suddenly, Flaky felt two strong arms forcefully grab her by her shoulders, the tight grip placed on her bruising her skin and almost cracking the bone underneath. She couldn't find the strength to cry for help as she slowly turned her head around her to see the man forcefully holding onto her.

She didn't have to see the face to know who it was, as the man lowered his head to meet her right ear, and whisper silently.

"Your body will be mine."

The last thing Flaky could recall seeing, before letting out one last scream, was a sharp knife being brought in front of the soft flesh of her neck, and being sliced in front of her with the sounding of gushing blood spurting out into the air.

And as her body fell to the floor, her digital alarm clock began to make loud beeping sounds, waking her up from the terrible nightmare.

Flaky sat up straight instantly, her eyes opened widely as she breathed heavily and rapidly, almost to the point of running out of much needed oxygen to stay alive. Cold sweat dripped down her face as she looked around sharply, noticing she was back inside the comfort of her home.

She curled up into a ball as she brought herself against the wall behind her, and closed her eyes as she rocked back and forth.

"Oh dear God, why am I so scared? What have I brought myself into?"

* * *

She could have stayed home. She could have taken her dream as an obvious sign of future danger and locked her doors and hide forever. She could have easily avoided all of this and sleep soundly for the rest of the day.

And still, Flaky found herself dressing up and preparing to go to the park with the man she only met a few times, and the only bits she can focus on about him is how mysterious and scary the man appears to be. A man that gives her nightmares.

And she is going out with him to the park today.

As Flaky brushed her long soft hair with a well-crafted brush, pulling out some of the small flakes of dandruff in her head, she looked at herself with a blank stare. Her mind argued with itself as she proceeded to do every bit to look presentable.

"He's a terrifying man! You should run and hide while you got the chance!"

"But you barely know the guy. Perhaps he really is just some sad lonely man that just needs a friend to get him out again."

"Did you see those dark eyes?! That deep and devilish voice of his?! He can't be trusted!"

"But maybe if you spend time with him, you'll see it's only your paranoia making him appear bad."

"He could kill you!"

"But you made a promise that you would meet him there, and he looked so happy when you agreed to it. Don't you want to be the good neighbor and help him out? Maybe become… friends even?"

Flaky stopped brushing her red hair and placed the brush back into the drawer. She looked at herself one last time while picking up her purse, seeing if she was ready to walk out the door. As she made a silent agreement to herself she looked ready to meet with Flippy, she nodded her head and placed a smile on her face.

"I… I have to be strong. I can't let my fears get in the way. I will stand up and meet with him, find out he is indeed a nice guy, and I'll be able to sleep soundly at night again. I know he'll be good…"

She dropped her smile as she closed her eyes tightly.

"I pray and hope to God he is good…"

Now all settled and mentally prepared, Flaky walked out her front door of her lovely home, closing and locking it behind her. As she placed the house keys back into her purse, she turned around to see Giggles happily watering her fully grown plants decorating her front yard.

As Flaky moved towards her, Giggles turned around and brought a joyful smile to her face. "Flaky! Good to see you're up finally!"

Flaky nodded her head with a smile as Giggles placed her garden hose gently back down on the freshly cut green grass. Brushing herself off, Giggles hopped over to meet up with Flaky, observing her from head to toe as she noticed Flaky all dressed up, her hair brushed and her body clothed with the familiar and clean red dress.

"So, Flaky, you going somewhere today? I rarely see you dress up this nicely on just your average day."

Flaky blushed at Giggles' ability to point out her appearance, knowing it was rare to see her dress as nicely unless for special occasions. She shrugged her shoulders as she looked down shyly.

"Well… I'm supposed to meet up with… Flippy at the park today, so-"

Flaky was interrupted by Giggles clasping her hands together, hopping in a joyous manner as she made the widest smile Flaky ever seen. "Oh Flaky, I knew you two would get along easily! See, I told you he was a nice man who just looks a tad… different. And he's already got you to go with him on a date? Ah, isn't that just sweet?!"

Flaky's face continued to turn a dark shade of red as she brought her hands up, shaking her head as she stuttered while speaking. "O-O-Oh n-no! It's not a… d-date or anything like that! I-It's just… um, a meeting thing. We're just going to walk and talk over at the park so we can get to know each other, that's it! I s-swear!"

Giggles' made a silent giggle as she closed her eyes, her smile still showing her white teeth. "Whatever you say, Flaky. Whatever you say!"

She nodded her head one last time and turned her back to Flaky, her head looking forward. "Well, I don't want to keep you or anything. Don't want to be a hindrance on your 'meeting' with Flippy now!"

As Giggles made one last laugh, Flaky sighed with a shy look and proceeded to march towards the sidewalk and make her way downtown to the park.

Unlike the haunting nightmare she had last night, Flippy's prediction of the weather was spot on. The sun was high above her in the sky, while the cool temperature felt lovely to walk in. As Flaky found the bench on the outer edge of the park, she noticed that, also unlike her dream, it was rather packed with a variety of people, all of them with joyous smiles and laughing with merriment.

Flaky smiled at the lovely nature of the people enjoying their lives, then dropped it shortly after as she noticed the absent appearance of Flippy. She sat down on the lonely bench by herself, and looked around carefully to see the retired veteran, but yet could not find a single sign of him.

"Where is Flippy? He said to meet him at this spot, right?"

As Flaky spoke to herself quietly, she leaned back on the bench and relaxed her body against the wooden frame. The sound of a cool breeze in the air, with the addition of people conversing with each other, was soothing to her, making her close her eyes and wait peacefully at the park.

"There you are!"

The monstrous voice made Flaky open her eyes instantly. Before she could jump to her feet, two hands grasped her shoulders. She began to cry out as she could feel the strong grip crushing her bones just like in her dream, and she began to jolt and attempt break out of the grip as she thought of the painful death she was going to face.

"Whoa, Flaky! Calm down, please!"

Flaky seized her attempt to break free as the dark voice was now replaced with one that was more soothing. As she slowly started to relax her body, she looked over to her shoulders to see one of the strong hands resting gently on her shoulder, not forcefully gripping her like she thought.

Confused, she turned her head around to face the dark green eyes of Flippy, who was standing above her with a worried expression on his face. As her eyes met his, Flippy brought his hands off her shoulders and placed them up in front of him, as if he were surrendering.

"I'm sorry, Flaky. I didn't mean to scare you like that."

Flaky watched Flippy move to stand in front of her, rubbing the back of his head with a guilty expression. She felt embarrassed to have made that reaction in front of him, and if she were to scream out even louder, she would grab unwanted attention, making an embarrassing moment for the two of them.

Feeling obligated to apologize, Flaky got to her feet and looked down shyly. "No, it's okay. I was… just taken by surprise is all… heh..."

Flippy made a silent chuckle as he shook his head. Flaky made a fake silent laugh as well as the two looked away from each other shyly, the awkward introduction making the day start off not so pleasantly for the both of them.

Looking to break silence, Flippy took notice of Flaky's appearance, and smiled as he gestured his right hand towards her. "You look real nice today, Flaky."

Flaky looked up to Flippy and nodded her head with a tiny smile. "Thank you, Flippy…" Though Flippy's compliment was acceptable, Flaky could not say the same for Flippy. He was still wearing his old military fatigues that looked musty and dirty, and his light-green hair was rather long and in need of some treatment.

Flippy wasn't exactly… presentable to Flaky, though she guessed this is what he made himself get used to if everyone else was scared of him. Though by his appearance alone, she could see why.

Flaky shrugged her shoulders as she looked down the path leading to the inner portions of the park. As her face looked down the path, her eyes trailed off to see a path leading out of the park. Thoughts went through her head again of what her dream foretold of what could happen deeper in the park, and perhaps she could make an excuse now to run.

Noticing she was standing in silence and her mind trailing away from their meeting, Flippy gestured his right hand down the path and spoke loudly enough to grab Flaky's attention. "Should we get going?"

Flaky turned her head quickly to face Flippy, who was staring at Flaky awaiting an answer. She looked down for a moment and nodded her head, speaking quietly to herself.

"Be strong, Flaky. Nothing will go wrong. Try to forget what you saw and think happy thoughts. It will be okay… please be okay…"

She looked up to Flippy and, with a forced smile, gestured her head down the path. "Yeah, sure."

Seeing they were in agreement, Flaky patiently waited for Flippy to walk first before following behind him, keeping her eyes on him as she made sure to keep a good distance beyond his reach.

While moving ahead, Flippy could already tell Flaky was keeping her distance from him, which did not feel pleasing at the slightest. He slowed down a bit, hoping to let Flaky catch up to his side, though noticed she adjusted her speed to accommodate it, continuing to walk a fair distance from him.

They walked for a few dozen feet in silence, both keeping quiet while only taking their attention to see the birds chirping in the sky or beautiful points along the paths. Flippy, raising his hand in the air, could feel the cool wind against his fingertips, and turned his head to face Flaky.

"Weather is nice out today, don't you think? Perfect day to have a stroll outside and talk, right?"

Flaky, who was looking down at her feet as she followed Flippy, looked up and nodded her head with a small smile, though did not respond with words. Flippy dropped his smile as he failed to make Flaky speak up, and faced forward again in silence, placing his hands back in his coat pockets.

The rest of the walk remained silent, with both of them never uttering a single word to each other during the trip. They would pass by spots of interest that would normally start a conversation, but neither one of them made the attempt to speak first. From time to time, Flippy would open his mouth again in hopes to start a conversation, but would close it as if he lost the words to speak. Flaky, though, remained perfectly silent.

One minute became two, two became five, five became fifteen, and so on as the two walked awkwardly together through the park. What was supposed to be a nice meeting to get to know one another only became a silent walk with no meaning to it. Flippy only wanted to have a nice conversation with Flaky, and yet she would not attempt to work with him.

Flaky came to a sudden halt as she noticed Flippy stop moving. He shook his head as he let out a depressed sigh, keeping his head down while he spoke softly.

"Flaky… what do I have to do?"

Flaky tilted her head in confusion. "What do you mean?"

Flippy turned his head around instantly, the sudden movement catching Flaky off-guard and making her jolt slightly. Flippy appeared somewhat annoyed and angered, which made Flaky shake slightly as he moved in closer.

"Flaky, don't play dumb with me, alright! You haven't bothered to say a single word to me, and when I came to meet up with you, your first reaction was to jump up and be scared of me, even when I did nothing yet! I wanted you to be on this walk with me so you could talk to me, so you could see that I am not scary, that you did not need to be afraid of me, to find out that I am not this scary man that you seem to keep making out of me!"

Flaky swallowed her throat as she suddenly noticed a change in the color of Flippy's eyes, seeing that ominous emerald glow as he got closer towards her. She didn't know if she should run now and call for help, and stand and pray she would be fine. That stare he gave her paralyzed her, and she didn't know how to respond.

Flippy's voice began to deepen as he got closer to Flaky. "Or do you really think I am some kind of monster? Because if I am, should I act like one, just like how everyone else sees me as?!"

Flaky shook her head violently as she spoke with a frightened tone. "N-N-No! Y-You don't-"

"Then what's wrong with me, huh?! I try to be nice and you continue to be scared of me! What is it that makes you so scared of me?! Tell me!"

As Flippy stared with his emerald eyes at Flaky, Flaky tried to come up with some kind of point to answer him with. That horrifying appearance of his was making her stay silent in fear, unable to voice her answer. Whatever she thought of saying, she was afraid it would anger him further.

She took a quick moment to think of something to respond with, something to answer his question with. As her body shivered violently, she closed her eyes and spoke with the first thing that came to her mind.

"M-M-Maybe… i-it's your c-clothes?"

The emerald glow in Flippy's eyes suddenly disappeared and were replaced with the dark-green originals. Flippy tilted his head with a confused look, dumbfounded by the answer. "My… my clothes?"

Flaky opened her eyes and noticed Flippy was standing up straight with a curious expression, looking at her confusingly. The frightening stance was absent once more, and he looked normal as ever.

Flaky put her right hand to her chest, feeling her heartbeat slowing down and letting out a relieved sigh. She smiled briefly before clearing her throat as Flippy continue to stand awaiting for a reason why his clothes were bad.

"Well… your clothes… you might want to… change them."

Flippy looked down to his old coat, patting it softly as he looked it over from his view. "But… but why? They seem perfectly fine to wear?"

Flaky rolled her eyes and shook her head. "No, they are not fine. They are old, and dirty, and tattered, and just downright… well, ugly. When was the last time you even had them cleaned?"

Flippy appeared insulted by Flaky's comment. "I clean them now and then. They just… got old is all, but they are perfectly fine to use and everything. I had this coat for years and it's served its purpose ever since I first got it!"

Flaky looked at his coat and shook her head again. "Well, it's still old and broken and you need to wear something new… or at least cleaner."

Flippy sighed angrily and proceeded to take his coat off swiftly. "Okay, fine…" In a few seconds, Flippy took off his thick army coat off and was left with a just a short-sleeved tan BDU shirt resting against his body. He held the coat in front of him for Flaky to observe. "So… what do I do with it?"

There was a brief moment of silence as Flaky had a good view of Flippy's exposed arms and a closer look of his chest hiding beneath his shirt. Giggles was right when she said Flippy knew how to keep in shape; years after service, and he still looked fit for duty.

Flippy watched Flaky curiously as she still remained silently observing his muscular arms. "Flaky, hey, what do I do with the coat?"

Flaky blinked her eyes repeatedly and shook her head, coming back to reality again. She blushed significantly as she looked away for a bit, a shy look appearing on her face. "O-Oh, well, you can leave it on for now."

Flippy shrugged his shoulders and placed the coat over his body again. As he placed the buttons back into place, he spoke with an agitated tone. "So, anything else that needs to go or what?"

Flaky turned her head back and met with his matted hair again, and pointed it out instantly. "Well, you could also probably use a haircut, honestly."

Flippy brought his right hand to his hair and shook his head. "What about my hair? I think my hair is just fine."

"No, it's not fine. What it needs is a good trimming and a good wash to make it presentable and clean. Right now, it looks… lazy."

Flippy flung his arms in the air in annoyance. "Are you going to just keep judging the way I look or are you going to tell me what I have to do to be good around here?"

Flaky shook her head and placed her hands against her waist. "I am telling you how to be good. If you don't want people to think you're some scary monster or something, then the first thing you need to do is not look like one."

Flippy looked at Flaky briefly and then looked at himself again. He had to agree with her, he wasn't the most extravagant looking guy in town, and wearing dirty military clothes, along with dirty hair, must have made him look like a killer to start. A good cleaning on the outside would go a long way.

Knowing she was right, Flippy nodded his head and looked at Flaky. "Alright, fine, I'll… look around for something new to wear and get a haircut or something. Maybe I can call a requisition from my old base and see if they got any new suits in surplus they could share for an old veteran."

Flaky kept her hands at her waist as she tilted her head. "Don't you feel like you want to wear something besides military clothes all the time?"

Flippy smiled as he crossed his arms in front of him. "Hey, I am a military man through and through. Besides, I like the look and the clothes are a lot comfortable when you put them on. But I guess I can try looking for other attire as well."

Flaky nodded her head. "Good to hear."

"So, anything else?"

Flaky looked at Flippy for a few brief seconds in silence. She looked into his dark-green eyes and try to see the emerald ones she saw earlier, but they remained hidden once more. As for the rest of his posture, he looked like just a regular man. Even his smile was a little heart-warming to see.

Which was the most baffling sight she had ever seen. For one brief moment, she saw him in an angered stance with a dark and deep voice, and then the next, totally sane again. It was as if she interacted with two different men inside the same man at the same time.

It was confusing and horrifying at the same time. But seeing the smile on his face was a welcoming sight, and she did not want to see the dark expression for the rest of the trip.

She shook her head with a smile. "Let's… tackle one thing at a time, alright?"

Flippy nodded his head. "Fair enough. Should we get going?"

"Sure."

The two looked down the path of the park once more and continued down it, with Flippy walking ahead first. This time, though, he used his peripheral vision to see Flaky was walking more closely to his right side this time. Noticing her by his side closer to him this time was nice to see, and he smiled widely.

Flaky, though, was just too afraid to stay back this time, and felt staying closer to him would make sure she would not have to see that terrifying face for the rest of the day.

Flippy, making a second attempt to start an actual conversation this time, turned his head and spoke to Flaky. "So, Flaky, tell me: what brought you here to Happy Tree Town. It's just a small town in the middle of nowhere, and there are plenty of other cities more worthy of settling down at. So why choose here?"

Flaky shrugged her shoulders as she smiled. "Well… I saw an advertisement for a home that fit my budget well, and I felt the need to finally get a place of my own… plus I do like the smaller and open setting here instead of a crowded city, so it just felt… like home to me here. And since it felt like home, I decided to move here. And besides, the place looks lovely."

Flippy nodded his head. "Yeah… it sure is… as long as people actually let you enjoy it…"

Flaky looked up to see Flippy looking down at his feet, a depressed expression growing on his face. Flaky tilted her head as she walked a little closer to his side.

"Flippy… exactly how do people treat you here when you got back from the Army? What is life like now, if I can ask?"

Flippy, enjoying to hear Flaky now ask for his side of the story, turned his head to look at her directly. "It wasn't always like this. I lived here my whole life, and my time before I joined the Army… was wonderful. I had so many friends, everyone was so nice to me, I worked with friendly faces every day, and it… it just went all so well. There was absolutely not a single problem in the world in my life as I stayed here…"

Flippy shook his head while letting out a soft sigh. "But… once I came back from the Army… it's as if everything in the past never mattered, for both me and them. For me, I just felt… different… too different, and yet at the same time, the same usual me before I left. But everyone I look at or try to interact with, I look at them like I always did before, and yet they look at me as if they were seeing someone else… someone that's like a monster."

He faced down the path to make sure he was walking carefully on it, and faced Flaky again. "I don't come out much because I know people don't want to see me. When I do come out, if they don't run, they just stand there looking at me in fear, or have smiles that I know are not real. So… I stopped caring overall… because I thought no one will ever care for me ever again…"

Flippy stopped moving and placed his right hand on Flaky's left shoulder, making her come to a halt. She looked at Flippy, who nodded his head slowly towards her. From the look in his eyes, she could tell whatever he was going to say, he was serious about it.

"Flaky, I need help… a lot of help. I don't know what to do anymore. No one ever stays with me long enough to try and help me get back to normal. But… but you… you seem like a young and intelligent woman that could help me get back out there… with people. Flaky… I need you. I need you to stay with me and help me out. No matter how scary I appear, no matter how much I may frighten you, I need you to stay and help me. If you help me, maybe… maybe others will finally accept me again. Please Flaky… help me…"

If it wasn't the words Flippy said to her that would make Flaky respond, it was the lone tear crawling out of his left eye that told her he meant every word. Flippy was a sick man that needed someone to help him now, and right now, it seemed the only person he could turn to now was his closest neighbor.

But could she do it… should she do it? After what he told her and what she just saw, is it possible to turn this frightening man into someone she could easily trust without living in fear all the time?

That look he was giving her, though, was heavily convincing. There was something wrong with him deep inside she could not dig out, and yet she could see good in him. Perhaps… with enough time… even she herself would never have to be scared of him. Maybe, like Giggles told her, even become friends.

And, as the good neighbor she ought to be, she nodded her head with a smile. "Okay, Flippy, I'll stay and help you."

Flippy smiled widely, standing up tall and looking down at her with joy sparkling in his eyes. "Thank you so much, Flaky. It means a lot to finally hear that from someone. I promise I will do my best to be good to you so long as you always try to help."

Flaky tilted her head as she looked at Flippy. "Exactly, though, how can I help you?"

"Just like this: being with me. I don't know why, but when you're with me, I already feel like I'm becoming better, that I am being cared for. As long as you stay close to me, and give me a few tips now and then, I could finally feel happy, and others around me may finally accept me as a normal person again. So… stay with me, and I think things will turn out better for the both of us. Okay?"

Flaky nodded her head with a smile. "Okay."

The two stared at each other in silence, both giving each other a warm smile. But Flaky's, for the first time, was an actual genuine smile. Things could turn out for the better from here on out… maybe…

Flippy looked down at himself for a moment, placing his right hand over his stomach. He looked around where they stood and noticed a nearby restroom. He chuckled lightly and turned to face Flaky. "Hey, um, is it okay I-"

"Go ahead, I'll wait here."

Flippy nodded his head and ran straight for the restroom while Flaky remained standing nearby. She stood silently on the path, looking around and enjoying the scenery as she quietly watched others walk by.

Suddenly, her attention was caught by an odd looking construction worker walking alongside another man in a suit, holding out a schematic for him as they walked side to side. While the man in the fancy suit appeared normal, the construction worker… did not seem that useful, with a noticeable lack of hands, only bandaged nubs.

With curious ears, she could hear the two talking as they made their way past Flaky.

"So, what do you think? It could make the park more interesting if we integrated the beautiful pond and a few surrounding trees around the center of the park. Makes it look natural with the woodland scenery, and would not be too expensive nor take a long time to complete."

"Well… yeah, I think I can send a few workers to help with this small project. While we don't do landscaping that much, my workload is rather small in recent days, so I think this should be an easy project to take care of."

"Great, I'll suspect construction to begin soon?"

"Yes sir, I'll send proper workers to work on that portion of the land and adjust the scenery accordingly to that section."

The man in the suit nodded his head with a smile and walked off in a different direction, leaving the handyman to walk the path alone. He came to a stop, though, as his orange eyes met Flaky's, and he waved his left nub while he walked towards Flaky.

"Why hello there, ma'am! I don't remember seeing your face around here before. You new to this town?

Flaky smiled as she nodded her head politely. "Yes, indeed I am. Just moved her a couple of days ago."

The construction worker nodded his head, stopping just before Flaky. "Well, it's always great to have new members to this lovely community. Name's Handy. I'm the main head of the construction work that occurs in this town. Whatever building you see, more than likely I had some part in that project!"

Flaky smiled, though her eyes trailed off a bit to look at the nubs on Handy's hands. How did this man get anything done with the lack of fingers to grip construction equipment?

Handy noticed her curious eyes and chuckled lightly. "Oh, don't worry about these things. I may not have hands since after… the accident, but I am still able to give construction advice and take care of myself just like any other human being!"

Flaky looked up to Handy and nodded her head. "Oh, great to hear. My name's Flaky. It's a pleasure to meet you, Handy."

Handy smiled as he gestured his nubs around the park. "So, Miss Flaky, what brings you to this park? Is it the beautiful landscapes and points of interest that brought you here?"

Flaky looked around the park and nodded her head in agreement. "Yes, the park really is a beautiful place. But today, I'm here with Flippy so we-"

Handy waved his two nubs in front of Flaky, silencing her. His face went from glee to horror in a split second, his eyes widening in shock as he spoke quietly.

"Flippy! Did he do something to you?! Did he hurt you?! Has he beaten you or have you against your will?! Because if he did, I will call the police right now and we can take you back home safely!"

Flaky took a step back as Handy's horrified expression was a little daunting to her. His face looked like it had seen Death, and his rapid breathing and widened eyes look like he could pass out just hearing the name again.

"N-No, he hasn't done anything bad to me."

Handy stood up slightly, tilting his head in confusing. "Really? He hasn't done anything to you yet? Anything at all?"

"No. Why, should he?"

Handy looked back and forth to see if they were alone, and continued to whisper to Flaky. "Haven't you seen the guy? He looks awful and terrifying! That outfit, those menacing emerald eyes he gives you, he looks like an absolute living terror!"

Flaky looked down for a moment, shocked to hear she wasn't the only one to notice those menacing emerald eyes. "Well… he can look scary, yes… and he has frightened me sometimes… but I don't think that means he could be dangerous. He… just needs someone to be with him and help him out, I think. Maybe if someone stayed with him a bit... they would find out he isn't all bad"

Handy shook his head in disagreement. "Don't fool yourself, Flaky. That man is as dangerous as he looks. I heard stories that, while he was in the service, he would brutally kill surrendering troops, slice them open into multiple pieces, and… and… eat them!"

Flaky's eyes widened in horror. Flippy being a cold-blooded murdering cannibal?! That could never be true… could it?

"D-Don't you think that's a little much to think of him? Those are just stories… right?"

Handy shrugged his shoulders, still shaking his head. "Yeah, but they seem more convincing when he just gives… that look of his. I don't know what happen, but when he came back, he… changed. He just looks and can act like this terrifying monster sometimes, and if I were you, no matter what he says, you stay away from him. You'll be safer that way."

Flaky shook her head. "I… I can't just stay away from him because he looks scary… I promised I would help him now. Maybe if someone stays close to him… he'll change. Don't you think that?"

Handy looked down for a moment, closing his eyes. "I don't know, Flaky, but I don't think it's worth risking to find out. If you get too close to him, Flaky… he'll get to you when you least expect it, and when he does… I don't know what he'll do to you. Just… just don't get too close to him, okay?"

Flaky remained silent for a moment, and spoke calmly. "I… know he looks scary… and I will be careful… but why are you so scared of him personally?"

"I never worked on his house, so whenever I look at it, with that beaten down look it has, I just imagine the horrifying stuff that lies inside. I look at it, and I get this feeling that says… don't look down the basement."

Flaky took one more step back, all of Handy's words scaring her. She didn't know what to believe, hearing all of this. Could she really just agree with all of this simply by how he looks? He hasn't actually hurt her or anything, so could he be as bad as Handy says?

Seeing Flaky looked shock, Handy leaned in a little closer to speak. "Flaky, listen here. If Flippy ever tries to do something, just come to me, okay? I can…"

Handy went silent as his eyes looked beyond Flaky, and he swallowed his throat as he saw his worst fear.

Flippy standing tall above Flaky, looked down at Handy. His eyes were still the dark-green color, but Handy could see well beyond them. Handy, scared beyond comprehension, chuckled lightly as he stood up straight, waving his right nub as a fake smile grew on his face.

"H-Hey there, Flippy! Long time no see, huh? H-How you been, man?"

Flippy smiled and nodded his head. "Oh, I've been doing just fine, Handy, especially meeting Flaky here. She's been a nice person to me and I think she'll really help me out in the future."

Flaky looked up to Flippy and brought a tiny smile, Handy nodding his head. "Oh that's nice to hear!" Handy then quickly spun his head around to look behind, and spoke in a rapid tone. "Hey, listen, I got to go and… um, do some work now."

Flippy kept his smile as he looked down to Flaky. "That's okay. Flaky and I here were just on our way out anyway. You take care yourself, Handy. We might meet again in future, someday!"

Handy held his fake grin as he chuckled lightly. "Yeah, I look forward to it, Flippy! You two take care now!"

Flaky and Flippy nodded their heads to Handy, and the two walked off down the path leading out of the park. Handy let out a heavy sigh of relief, feeling safe once more as he turned to the opposite direction.

Then a cold shiver crawled down his spine, and he turned around to see Flippy looking back directly at him.

Staring at him with the devilish emerald eyes of his.

* * *

The sun was now heading towards the horizon as the day was slowly coming to a close. After a nice walk at the park today, conversing for a long time, Flaky and Flippy returned back to their section of the neighborhood. Flaky followed Flippy to the doorsteps of his house, and stood behind him as he unlocked his door.

He spoke calmly as he fiddled with the lock. "Flaky, thank you again for coming with me today. I know you're still a little afraid of me, and everyone else is as well, but I promise you, as long as you stay with me, things will get better for the both of us. I promise."

Flaky smiled as she nodded her head silently. Once Flippy unlocked his door, he turned around to see the redhead looking at him happily. And looking into her gentle eyes, he felt warm and happy to be with her now.

"Well… I guess I'll see you again in the future, right?"

Flaky held her smile as she looked at Flippy. "Of course. I'm just right across the street, you know."

Flippy chuckled lightly. "Oh yeah, right, heh…"

And with the small silence between them, the two waved goodbye to each other, and Flippy entered his home with a joyful smile on his face.

He closed the door behind him, and let out a relieved sigh as he looked up to the ceiling. "I can't believe it. She actually walked with me today. She talked to me today. Someone was finally with me today… and she was happy."

Flippy turned around and laid his back against the door, crossing his arms in front of his chest. "And that smile of hers… and that joyful look in her eyes. I can't even remember the last time someone looked like that when they were with me. She was such an amazing person that, even if she was scared, didn't run from me."

His face began to blush red as he looked down at his feet while closing his eyes. "And she's certainly beautiful too. That long red hair of hers, that lovely smile she has, those gentle eyes… and… and…"

Flippy slowly opened his eyes, and the dark-green irises were transforming into the reflecting emerald green color. He chuckled lightly, the sound of his voice beginning to deepen.

"And that… figure of hers. It looks so… smooth and soft. And that dirty hair of hers… I wonder if that dirty look represents how she likes it. And those lovely breasts… a little small, but I bet they taste mighty fine when given a good licking, and I bet she would love that as well."

He walked forward in his house, heading towards the kitchen at the far end. "And she said she'll stay with me and help… she'll stay by my side even if I act different. That means… she likes me… and only me now. We'll get closer, and we'll end of being together… just me… and that lovely body of hers…"

He stopped in the middle of the kitchen, and looked down at one of the wooden drawers. "But… Handy… that construction worker. The way he was talking to her… the way he looked at her with that smile… he wants her too… I know he does because he was with her just then…"

Flippy opened the drawer slowly, revealing the shiny contents inside. "But… he can't have her… because she said she will stay with me. She… is mine… and I can't let anyone else have her…"

He reached into the drawer, and instantly pulled out a sharp butcher's knife. The black grip was held tightly in his right hand, and the sharp steel blade attached it reflected the devilish face of his.

"Maybe… I'll have a talk with him in the future… and make sure he knows that Flaky… is mine."

* * *

 _ **Author's Note: Hmm, it seems Flippy is the obsessive type. Handy and all the other guys better be careful if they are around Flaky! (Alright, so he's going to be a little perverted yandere type here, but I think he'll play it just well down the road)**_

 _ **I hope all of you are enjoying the story thus far! So what will happen to Flippy and Flaky down the road now? We'll find out as the story continues!**_

 _ **As always, I thank all my readers for the amazing support they have given me; you guys are awesome! Leave a review and tell me what you think of the story, favorite/follow if you enjoy the story, and thank you all for reading!**_

 ** _Oh, and one last message to my readers and everyone else:_**

 ** _HAPPY VALENTINES DAY!_**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

 _ **Author's Note: Alright, this took WAY TOO LONG to get out, and I am so sorry that it did. I spend all day writing this out trying to get something to publish after this long wait, but this chapter went through like three revisions or something until I settled for this one, and I hope it's good. Again, apologies for the long wait, and I'll try to do better if I can. If not, Summer Break is only about 6 weeks from now, so when that comes, I definitely will have plenty of free time to work here!**_

 _ **So here you go everyone, Chapter 4!**_

 ** _WARNING: This chapter contains graphic violence that may be disturbing to some; read at your discretion._**

* * *

With the evening sun making its slow and steady descent on the western horizon, signaling the end of another beautiful day in Happy Tree Town, the many citizens that paraded the streets downtown began to make their way back home. After another long day of work, many were relieved to finally have a chance to lift up their feet and relax for the remainder of the night.

And no one else in the town could have a wider smile sewn to their face than Handy, who was walking to the old wooden door of his home not far from town. Walking peacefully to his quiet home away from work, Handy was happy to be walking alive again in the world and was prepared to face it again tomorrow.

Even his little nubs hanging by his sides, which hindered his lifestyle for years since a tragic construction accident, failed to ruin his ability to stay joyful in life. When years of the disability stuck with him, he soon began to take advantage of it, and was now capable of caring for himself just like anyone else.

Nothing else could possibly hurt his life anymore.

Once at his front door, Handy kicked up a small nearby rock to pull out the house key that was silently lying underneath. Taking his right boot off with his other foot, Handy carefully used his toes to pick up the golden key and unlocked his door slowly, giving him access to his home.

Placing the key safely back in its original spot, Handy entered his home and closed the door behind him, all while perfectly using his strong feet and legs to handle the job. Now inside, Handy proceeded to take off his other boot and place both by a nearby corner, nodding his head with a joyful smirk.

Wiping his forehead with the end of his right nub, Handy turned to face the inside of his house, heading towards the living room nearby. His voice had a relieved and excited tone as he marched over to a nearby recliner.

"Another day of work and another day alive! Man, it feels great to get up and work in this town." Handy dropped himself on the recliner, leaning back and relaxing the sore muscles on his back. "But boy, do I need a break once and a while. Using your legs as your arms gets exhausting after all these years."

Handy sighed as he looked up to his ceiling, closing his eyes as his body began to release the tension gained from work. "Though I guess once you get used to it, it's all worth it when you get a chance to live in this town. Yep, there's just no other place like this, especially the good people you get to work with every day."

After a short pause, Handy opened his eyes as a tiny thought rose in his head. "Though that young girl today… um… Flaky, yeah, that's her name. It was nice to meet her today, even though she looked all shy and… well, a tad dirty with the hair, but I'm sure we'll get along fine in the future. I got to show her to my lovely Petunia; those two would get along just fine…"

The smile on Handy's face began to disappear as a concerned look took its place. "But… what the hell was she doing with… him? God, who the hell would want to be with a guy like him in this town?! The last time a girl got near him in this town…"

Handy shook his head as he let out a depressed sigh. "Though maybe that girl is right… perhaps I place too much bad thought onto the guy. Maybe he isn't that bad… yet I can't stop and feel there is something twisted and off about the guy… there's just something that…"

He chuckled lightly as he shrugged his shoulders. "Heh, what am I worrying about? I barely see or hear from the guy anyway, and the day is already over. I don't have to worry about the man for-"

Handy's body jolted as the phone next to the recliner suddenly rang loudly, startling the construction worker. He looked over at the phone instantly, shocked by the unexpected call. His face made an annoyed scowl as he rolled his eyes in agitation.

"Dear Lord, who would be calling at this hour?! It's the end of the day; don't I deserve a moment of peace and quiet?!"

Adjusting his body so he could reach the phone, Handy used his toes to answer the phone, activating the speaker function. "Yes, who is it? This is Handy speaking."

"Hey man, how are you doing?"

Handy's eyes widened in sheer terror, his heart began to beat at a violent rate, and his mouth dropped in shock and awe. The voice on the other line was the most terrifying sound he could think of, and was unable to make any type of response to the question.

Staring at the phone in horror, silence was made between both ends of the line before the person calling decided to speak up again. "Hey, Handy, it's me, Flippy. You there, bud?"

Swallowing his throat while a cold sweat crawled down his forehead, Handy nodded his head hastily. "Y-Y-Yeah, man, I-I am here! H-How are you d-doing?"

Flippy chuckled lightly on the other end of the line. "Eh, can't complain here. In fact, I got to say, things have been turning out better. There have been some… complications, but I'm about to get those fixed soon."

Handy nodded his head while placing a fake smile on his face. "That's good to hear, Flippy… so, may I ask why you decided to call me at this time of day?"

Flippy sat up straight on his chair, smiling happily as he held the phone to his ear. "Oh, yeah, I was, uh, wondering something and I felt the need to ask you."

"What is it that you wanted to ask?"

"Well, I was wondering if you wanted to do something together, you know, catch up and all that."

Handy froze for a quick moment, stuck between fear and confusion. Flippy was asking to do something together… now? Flippy… asking Handy to do something… with him. This sounded like a nightmare coming real.

Handy shrugged his shoulders, trying to find a quick answer without rudely hanging up the phone. "Um… I don't know man. I think I might be-"

"Oh come on Handy, you got to take a break from work sometime. Besides, this is a perfect time to just hang out and get to know each other better. Wherever you feel like going, I can gladly cover the cost this time. Seriously Handy, don't be a buzzkill here."

Judging by Flippy's determination to grab his attention, Handy knew it was futile to make any attempt to escape. Flippy has trapped him in a corner, and he had no choice but to comply. But where could he take him so he didn't feel so unsafe?

After a quick though process of possible areas to go to, Handy settled down to just one. Somewhere public where he was sure someone could watch his back for security. "How about… we go to the bowling alley? I think they should still be open at this time."

Flippy dropped his smile as a confused expression formed on his face. "Um… bowling? Handy… you sure-"

"Yes, I am completely sure."

After a brief pause, Flippy shrugged his shoulders and brought back his smile. "Alright then, bowling! Love the idea already! Okay, we'll meet there in the next half-hour or so. See you soon man!"

"Yeah…" With his big toe, Handy hanged up the phone with one button press. He shook his head in disbelief at what he may have brought himself into. "I'm sure it'll be fun."

As Handy prepared to get up and leave, Flippy hanged up his phone next to his chair, a wide grin forming on his face. While still sitting in his chair silently, he nodded his head while turning to look down at his lap.

"This is going to be great. Just me, Handy, and a good amount of time to know each other…"

After wiping it carefully with a clean cloth, Flippy held up the sharp butcher knife in front of him, the metallic reflection revealing his glowing emerald eyes, and a sadistic grin revealing his sharp teeth.

A dark chuckle was heard as he carefully opened his jacket, placing the knife in a concealed pocket inside. He patted it softly, making sure it was hidden perfectly, and spoke in a deep and devilish tone.

"And at the end of the day, when the time is just right… I'll be rid of one less problem in the world."

* * *

It was only a short walk away to the bowling alley from Handy's own home, so he decided to use his healthy legs one last time for the day. The nighttime sky was beginning to show itself, the color turning to a purplish look, and a few stars twinkling above.

Handy, though, did not feel as bright as the stars above. In fact, he was downright terrified. No matter how hard he tried to stay calm and strong, his paranoid mind was running through all the scenarios of what could happen with his meeting with Flippy.

None of them ending well.

He could easily turn back right now and run for home and lock the door, ignoring Flippy all together. But with an activity set together right now, Handy could only think of the trouble he'd cause to himself if he left Flippy behind.

Handy sighed as he shook his head. "Get it together, Handy. Just say to yourself that everything you heard about the guy is just stories. He isn't dangerous or scary, he's just…"

Coming to a complete halt, Handy stood in front of the entrance of the bowling alley, exactly as instructed. But what confused him was the absence of a particular man who was supposed to be meeting him this exact second. There was no sign of him anywhere.

Handy inhaled deeply as his eyes looked around carefully. His heart began to beat faster as his tried his best to find Flippy, yet was failing miserably. "Damn it, where the hell is-"

"BOO!"

Handy screamed at the top of his lungs as he tripped backwards on the concrete ground, landing hard on his posterior as he looked up in horror. He pushed himself away quickly with his feet as his eyes meet the color of dark-green, staring down at him with a cold expression.

While almost beginning to cry in horror, Handy tilted his head as he heard the sound of laughter emitting from the man standing above him. Handy shook his head as he stared at the man grinning at him, holding back the laughs trying to come out.

"Damn Handy, I didn't think you'd get scared that easily. A strong construction worker that risks his life around construction sites daily, and you get scared by some random guy? Boy, I'm already learning something from you already!"

Handy's heart returned back to a peaceful state, though his face showed rage as he gave an angry scowl to the man. "That wasn't funny, Flippy! You almost scared me to death, you know that?!"

Flippy held up his hands in front of him, shrugging his shoulders as he looked at Handy confusingly. "Gee man, sorry. It was just a little joke is all, take it easy." After a few seconds of silence between them, Flippy reached out his right hand to Handy. "Here, let me help you up."

Handy shook his head in annoyance. "Don't bother, I can get up on my own." With Flippy taking a few steps back, Handy rocked his body back and forth until he was face first to the ground. He then quickly moved his left leg to get in a kneeling position, and hoisted himself up with the use of his nubs.

Flippy nodded his head, impressed by Handy's ability to fight against his disability. "Well, you seem to be able to care for yourself easily."

Handy shrugged his shoulders as he turned to face Flippy. "Hey, after years living like this, you learn a thing or two to work around a problem and take advantage of it."

"And I can see you definitely have taken full advantage of it all."

"I may lack hands, but I got two strong legs and a beating heart. So long as I can stand, I can do whatever the hell I want and do it as good as anyone else."

Flippy chuckled amusingly. "Glad to hear your enthusiasm Handy. Now, how about we use that enthusiasm at a round of bowling?"

Handy observed Flippy closely a bit, still angered and scared at Flippy's initial introduction. And yet, looking closely enough, he felt little need to fear him. Flippy, while dressed rather dirty and in need of some refinement of apparel, appeared calm and happy, far from the monster he thought he would see.

But could it all just be an elaborate ruse to get rid of him when he least suspected it?

Handy nodded his head anyway, and brought a smile to his face. "Yeah, come on."

Without wasting time, the two 'friends' walked in and ordered their lane, which came out to be a nice open spot over at Lane 2. To the surprise of both of them, the place was jammed back currently, with nearly every lane occupied by a small party. The place was definitely making business.

As Handy proceeded to carefully place on his pair of bowling shoes, Flippy was busy entering the information on the control panel, entering his name in the first box. Before entering in a second name, he quickly turned around and faced Handy, a concerned look showing on his face.

"Um, Handy, you sure you're just fine… sitting out on this one? I mean-"

Handy raised up his right nub with a grin. "It's fine, Flippy. You can set it as a one-player match; I'm perfectly okay sitting out on this one."

Flippy shook his head as he placed his hands as his sides. "Seriously, why did you want to come here and meet if you're not going to play? And actually… why did this place come to mind first to you?"

Handy thought carefully on the curious question, thinking how to answer it to Flippy. While it was mostly to stay somewhere public and safe from whatever Flippy could do to him, Handy had another reason why the bowling alley was his go-to place to relax.

Handy chuckled as he looked around at the interior of the alley. "Well… I just like the place. Maybe it's because I used to come here like all the time years back… you know, when I had hands and everything. But even if I can't play, I just enjoy seeing others play and have fun at this game…"

Flippy tilted his head as he noticed Handy began to snicker silently. "And I also love to silently criticize all the people the constantly fuck it up all the time!"

Flippy leaned back, a surprise look being shown on his face. "Oh, so you're a critic huh? What were you, some kind of champion or something?"

"Yeah, pretty much."

Flippy's eyes widened at the instant calm response. "You shitting me or something?"

Handy shook his head with a smile. "I'm serious. I was good, REAL good at this game. I knew the perfect posture, the perfect ball to roll, and every possible way to score a perfect game, even if the pin were on opposite ends. Bowling was my game!"

Flippy rolled his eyes in disbelief. "Yeah, can you really prove that claim there?"

"Sure." Handy turned to his right to the lane next to him, noticing a man prepared to roll his ball down the lane. "You see that guy right there?"

Flippy looked over and noticed the same man Handy was pointing out with his nub. "Yeah?"

"Bet you 20 bucks that guy rolls a gutter only halfway down the lane. And to be specific, it'll be on the left side."

Flippy smiled as he walked over to Handy. "So you want to lose a good portion of you paycheck, huh? Alright, I'm in."

Handy gave a cocky smirk as the two watched the man run forward and roll the bowling ball down the lane. Flippy was smiling widely, thinking the ball would roll perfectly to the end and score some points. His smile would instantly turn into a shocked frown as the ball suddenly went to the left side and, halfway down the lane, went into the gutter, completely missing the pins.

Flippy turned to Handy, who was holding out his right nub to him. "You want to place another bet again? I got all day!"

Flippy shook his head as he quickly pulled out a 20 dollar bill, quickly handing it to Handy and looking away in defeat. "Alright, tell me how you knew that guy would completely screw up!"

As Handy placed the 20 dollar bill in his front shirt pocket with his teeth, he shrugged his shoulders while leaning back on the chair. "I could tell by the way he was standing, and how he was about to approach the lane and throw the ball. He was going to completely miss and I could tell. I told you I was good."

"Yeah, I guess you are."

For the remainder of the game, Handy and Flippy spoke back and forth between each other, mixing between Handy's constant critics on Flippy's mistakes, to usual everyday chatter and small talk. They shared a few jokes, had a couple of laughs, some tiny arguments before ending it with something funny, and overall, were enjoying the day.

It was a complete shock to both of them, and neither one was willing to admit it.

Looking at the scoreboard, Handy noticed they were on the last round before the end of the game. "Well, looks like you're on the final round. Better make this one count, buddy, because damn, I never seen a game this bad before."

Flippy scoffed as he pulled out his ball from the machine, returning back from his last roll. "Oh yeah, well, I bet that twenty dollars I gave you back that I'll get a strike this time. I lose, I'll give you another twenty this time."

Handy chuckled as he leaned back with a cocky smile. "Boy, you sure got a gambling problem buddy. I should actually help you by not agreeing to it, but hey, getting another twenty bucks because you'll definitely mess up sounds fair to me."

With the ball in his hands, Flippy got himself a few feet before the lane, ready to roll the ball down and make his mark. While standing still, Handy, spoke silently to himself, critiquing Flippy's poor stance.

"I'm giving this guy five pins at most here. With a position like that, he's totally-"

"I know you didn't want to be here, Handy."

Handy went silent as he tilted his head, leaning forward and looking directly at the backside of Flippy. "What was that, Flippy?"

"I know you didn't want to meet up with me here, Handy. I know you hated the idea of coming out here to see me even when I suggested to do it. And… I know you're afraid of me… just like everyone else."

Handy was completely silent, his voice unable to produce words as he did not know what to say in response. As he tried to come up with any kind of rebuttal, Flippy placed his ball back on the machine, letting it rest there as he closed his eyes tight.

Thinking of an answer, Handy spoke up as calm as he could. "Well… that's not all true. I mean-"

Flippy held up his hand, silencing Handy. "Don't even bother trying, Handy. I'm not blind or stupid. I could tell just from the sound of your voice on the phone that you didn't want to do this, not one bit. And when we happened to have met at the park today, I could see it in your eyes how scared you were just to talk with me, and how you just wanted to leave me there and not look back."

Flippy turned his head to face Handy, and nodded his head as his eyes stared depressingly at him. "Handy… I'm sorry if I scare you that easily. I'm sorry you don't want to be with me right now. I… I just wanted to try and show you that I'm not as bad as a guy you or everyone else tries to make me out as. I have problems, I know… but… but I'm not a monster, and I'm doing my best to prove that."

Flippy took a few steps forward to Handy, staring down at him as he gave a blank look towards him. "Handy, if you don't want to stay with me here and rather go because you're still scared of me… if you really think I'm a monster… then you're free to get up and leave. I won't be offended if you do. I just hope, down the road, we can try again to be friends."

Handy sat still without a word to say. He expected to see so much from Flippy, but was not prepared to see emotion such as this from a man he viewed as a killer or monster. He didn't think Flippy took this entire trip as serious as he did, or felt this strongly about everything else.

This was not the Flippy he thought he was being with. And now that he has noticed it…

Handy got to his feet and stood up tall in front of Flippy. Without a word to say, Handy reached out his right nub, as if he was showing his hand to him. Flippy looked at Handy's nub, seeing his moving it up in down as a gesture to shake his 'hand.'

Flippy reached out with his right hand and met Handy's nub, and the two shook 'hands,' with smiles on both their faces. Handy nodded his head towards Flippy, letting out a soft sigh as the two broke their handshake.

"No, Flippy, I'm sorry. It's my own fault to let some stories or your appearance get the better of me and become the reason to judge you. I made up assumptions and tales from what I heard or saw, but never gave myself the chance to see the real you. I judged a book by its cover, never taking a chance to see what it really was. Seeing you here, Flippy, you showed me you're far from this monster I thought you were, and I'm sorry I ever thought differently of you."

Flippy chuckled in delight, a joyful smile growing on his face while shrugging his shoulders. "Well, I can't blame you for everything. I could have done better to at least keep a better appearance, I must admit, but… it's great to hear that from you, Handy. It means a lot to me."

"Hey, no problem, buddy. Now, stop stalling, roll that ball, and give me that extra twenty of yours!"

Flippy shook his head as the two laughed. He went forward for the solid bowling ball, and made his final attempt at a strike.

At the end of the game, Flippy was out forty dollars.

* * *

Walking in the nighttime streets of Happy Tree Town, Handy and Flippy were walking alongside each other, continuing their conversations prior at the bowling alley while Handy constantly flaunted his forty dollars thanks to Flippy's gambling addiction, much to the dismay of Flippy.

As they walked quietly together, Flippy turned to Handy and ask a question in a calm demeanor. "Hey, Handy, I know you're off work now, but there's something at home that I want your opinion on. I got a room that I'm thinking of adjusting or something and I thought a good construction worker such as yourself could give your opinion or something."

Handy nodded his head with a smile. "Sure thing, man, I got time to look!"

Eager to show Handy the room needed for renovation, Flippy escorted Handy back to his home at the other end of Happy Tree Town. As they made their way to Flippy's house, Handy got a close look of his home, at least of the exterior. While he didn't show it on his face, he felt a sense of disgust, looking out old it was from the wooden material alone. If it were up to him, he'd do the entire house for repairs instead of one room.

He could only imagine how dreadful the interior had to be.

Following behind Flippy, Handy stood by the front door with him, and waited patiently for Flippy to unlock the door. After a few seconds of fiddling with the key, Flippy unlocked the door and placed his right hand on the doorknob.

"Welcome, Handy, to my small home on the outskirts of town."

Before Flippy opened the door completely open, Handy was making a variety of mental images of how dirty, rotten, old, or ugly the inside could be. Old furniture, dirt… blood? It could look like a horror house inside… except the horrors would be terrifyingly real.

That thought would be erased as Handy stared in awe and amazement of Flippy's home. While the exterior of the house needed some fine work, the inside was almost something you'd fine in a brand new home on the market. Clean carpet floors, some fancy well placed decorations (many of them war related from variety of periods), and an overall pleasing appearance.

Flippy turned to face Handy, noticing his astonished look. "Surprised?"

Handy nodded his head slowly. "That's an understatement, this place is amazing! You definitely keep the insides of your home in top condition!"

Flippy smiled as he shrugged his shoulders. "Hey, when you live at home pretty much every day, you want to take care of the place. It's my home, so I want its insides to be clean and healthy."

"Well, I am impressed, Flippy. You still can use some work on the exterior siding, but at least inside, it feels like a whole new home." After a few seconds of admiring the inside furniture, Handy turned to Flippy and nodded his head. "So, where's this room you need looking at?"

Flippy gestured his right hand to Handy and beckoned him over. "It's just over here, down the hallway."

The two made their way down Flippy's hallway, walking by a furnished kitchen and decorated dining room. They proceeded to walk down the enter hallway until they reached the very end, where a door could be found on both the left and right sides. Flippy pointed to the left door, and placed his hand on the doorknob.

Handy looked at Flippy, who gestured his head to the door. "It's this room here."

Curious as to what he would see, Handy stood close to Flippy and watched him open the door slowly. Once the door was fully open, Handy got in front of Flippy and took a close look inside…

And was left confused as the only thing he could see was a pair of rickety old stairs leading down to a pitch-black dark basement, with no sign of how far it went down.

"What the-"

As Handy turned around, his chest were met with two strong hands that hit him hard, hurting his torso. While time felt like it had slowed down, Handy noticed that Flippy had forcefully pushed him, that sheer impact from the strength of Flippy's hands sending Handy backwards and down the stairs behind him.

To make an attempt to save his life, Handy reached out to the railings on the sides. But without any hands to grab onto the railing and keep him up straight, Handy watched in horror as he felled down the entire flight of stairs into the dark abyss of the basement.

So much pain was being brought over Handy's body. His head bounced back and forth as it hit against the stairs and walls, hurting his brain and causing a painful concussion. The bones in his legs and torso began to crack and break, causing sheer agonizing pain to the point his body hurt too much to even lift a muscle.

It felt like forever that Handy felled down the stairs, screaming loudly in pain as he cried for help, yet only found himself to fall further in the darkness. Suddenly, he felt the coldness of the concrete floor of the basement, finally reaching the bottom, though was completely immobilized due to the pain he endured.

Handy gritted his teeth as his body shook, tears of pain crawling down his cheeks as he cried out loudly. "FUCK! OH FUCK, MY LEGS!"

The darkness of the basement was eliminated as a lone light hanging above turned on, illuminating the dirty basement with a dull light. As Handy curled up in pain, he looked up in fear and anger as Flippy slowly took his time to walk down the stairs toward Handy.

Handy shook his head as he yelled angrily at him. "What the fuck is wrong with you, Flippy?! Why the hell did you do this to me?! I thought we were friends, you son of a bitch!"

Flippy remained silent as he reached the bottom of the stairs, standing perfectly still as he stared directly at Handy. Handy looked up for a moment, keeping his eyes on Flippy every second as the backstabber walked towards him. With every step he took, Handy noticed something different of Flippy, something that was completely off.

It hit him like a cold sharp blade as he met the horrifying sight that almost wanted to make him scream in fear.

Two glowing emerald eyes.

As Handy sat petrified and unable to speak, he laid helplessly while hearing the dark tone of Flippy's voice, devilish compared to his usual light tone. "I thought we were friends too, Handy. I really did… until I remembered."

Handy shook his head in confusion, trying his best to kick himself away from Flippy. "Remember what?! We barely got a chance to know each other until today! What could you have possibly remembered?!"

Flippy took a step closer to Handy before kneeling down to him, his face closing onto Handy as he gave a cold and dark stare to him, causing Handy to freeze in horror as he watched the emerald eyes burn into his soul.

"You're in love with Flaky. You want to take her for yourself. You want to take her away from me, to make sure I am never happy again. That's what you want."

Handy shook his head, confusion and anger causing him to yell out louder. "What the fuck are you talking about?! I'm not in love with her at all! I barely even know the woman!"

As Handy continued to speak, he was silenced by the right fist from Flippy, hitting straight across his face and breaking his nose. Handy cringed in pain as his face was bruised from the single punch on his face, small droplets of blood crawling out of his nose.

"BULLSHIT! I saw you talking to her, how you were smiling and making her smile. I saw you standing with her, and talking shit about me! You were trying to make me look bad so you could have her all for yourself!"

Handy shook his head violently, his heart beating in horror as Flippy continued to lean in closer. "No, I'm serious! I swear I wasn't trying to take her away from you! I was just being friendly to her!"

Flippy shook his head as his right hand trailed to his jacket, reaching to one of the pockets inside. "That's how it always starts. You act all nice and friendly, thinking you're just having a 'friendly' chat, until soon enough, you're taking a lovely young woman away from someone who deserves her more. You almost took her away from me, and I can't let you do that ever again…"

With a swift pull, Flippy unsheathed the butcher knife concealed in his deep jacket pocket, freshly sharpened and perfectly clean. He slowly placed it next to the open flesh of Handy's neck, rubbing the back end carefully without cutting open an artery.

Sweat and tears crawled down Handy's face, who was whimpering in fear while laying helplessly on the cold ground. "W-W-What are y-you going t-t-to d-do to m-me?!"

Flippy smiled as he nodded his head, holding the knife straight up to Handy's eyes.

"I'm going to make sure you never get in my way ever again!"

Without any prior indication, Flippy used his left hand to grab onto Handy's right leg with a forceful grip, holding down his leg at the knee cap. Handy watched in horror as he could only lay and view Flippy raised the sharp knife high in the air, and swing it down onto his right leg, hitting directly beneath the knee cap.

As the knife jammed itself deep into the soft flesh of Handy, Handy screamed in pain, squirming back and forth as blood gushed out of the wound. Tears of agonizing pain crawled down his cheeks as he felt the knife lay deep into his leg, almost near the bone. Moving around only worsen the terrible pain, yet his body could not stop itself from frantically trying to escape.

Flippy laughed sadistically as he held a tight grip on Handy's right leg and the knife. "That's it, squirm! Squirm for me! Come on and fight it! I love it when someone fights!"

Proceeding with the sadistic torture, Flippy grabbed the handle of the knife and forcefully continued to dig through the flesh of Handy, using it like a saw to cut open his leg. Handy continued to scream in pain as more and more blood squirted out of the wound, forming a puddle of crimson blood on the floor while also landing on Flippy's face and clothes.

Handy then felt the knife reach his bone, and with one more forceful push from Flippy, could feel the bones break and half, and instantly have his leg ripped straight off from him. With Handy's right leg torn off, Flippy stood tall, holding the leg like a trophy as he let it dangle above Handy, who was screaming in pain while letting the massive wound gush out a river of blood before him.

Flippy tossed the leg to the other side of the room, chuckling devilishly as he moved to Handy's other side. "Still trying to fight, huh? Still determined to take her away from me?! Alright then, have it your way, friend!"

Just as he did with the first leg, Flippy knelt down to Handy's left leg, held it by its knee cap, and swung his knife to the leg. The first swing went deep into his flesh, deeper than the first, and spurted blood onto the floor and Flippy.

Handy was almost passed out from the amount of sheer pain he felt and constantly crying in agony, yet there was nothing he could do from Flippy cutting through his left leg, breaking through his tough bones, and tearing it off before throwing it aside, leaving a gaping hole where his leg used to be attached to.

With both of his legs now removed, Handy laid silently on the concrete floor, his body shaking as the blood from his open wound continued to pour out. His eyes remained half-shut as his body felt weak and cold, his vision blurring in and out as he could feel death coming upon him.

Sure enough, looking slowly to his right, he could see death standing above him, holding a blood stained knife tightly in his right hand. Flippy brought the knife up to his face, admiring the sticky crimson blood stuck to it, before placing it back in his jacket with a sadistic smirk.

Too weak to yell anymore, Handy spoke softly with all of his remaining strength, lifting his right nub up in hopes to grab attention. "Please… kill me… just kill me…"

Flippy chuckled at the request, almost laughing loudly as he placed his hands by his sides. "Now why on earth would I consider doing that? How exactly would that make you learn your lesson to never take something important from me ever again? Nah, you need to be alive to understand the pain you could have given me, and be punished for even thinking of doing it to start."

Too weak to even make a rebuttal, Handy laid half-dead on the floor, his head resting again a growing puddle of blood while slowly getting colder. Noticing he was nearing death, Flippy knew he was going to have Handy with him for long due to the amount of blood loss. But he couldn't let him go free; it wouldn't turn out well for Flippy if he did.

Thinking of a plan, Flippy smiled widely as he walked over to a nearby cabinet, speaking calmly as he opened it to search its contents.

"Well, considering now you are now completely disabled and unfit to care for yourself, I guess it is up to me to make sure you stay alive every day. And as your new lovely and caring friend, I will make sure to keep you up every day! Isn't that great?"

Handy didn't even bother to fight it anymore; he knew at this point, no matter how hard he tried, or how hard he prayed, he was going to die here in the most agonizing way possible.

His worst fears had become true, and now he was going to die in it.

Though too weak to care, Handy looked up and squinted his eyes as he watched Flippy come over with three objects: a large medkit, a roll of duct tape, and a long length of thick rope. Not bothering to fight, he let Flippy proceed to apply as much medical attention to Handy's wound, placing medical ointment, bandages and other necessary treatments for severe injuries.

Once he noticed Handy was patched up, Flippy clasped his hands together and gave a wide smile to Handy. "Alright, that should hold you together for now. So, let's get you settled in, shall we?"

Lifting the poor man by his nubs, Flippy hoisted Handy over his shoulders and carried his frail body over to the far corner of the basement before gently laying him down up straight. Before Handy could speak, Flippy applied a strap of duct tape over his mouth, silencing him completely and muffling out his words. Flippy then proceeded to tie up his nubs to his sides and the remaining pieces of his legs with the rope, making it impossible for Handy to move.

Seeing his job was now accomplished, Flippy stood up tall and placed his hands to his sides. A sadistic smile grew on his face as he nodded his head. "There, now you're all set and ready! Trust me, you're going to enjoy living here! I'll be sure to check on you now and then just to see how you're doing, alright pal?"

As Flippy prepared to turn around, he raised his right hand in the air, chuckling lightly as he looked over at a near-dead Handy one last time. "Oh, and I actually do have a room that needs checking out. I'll pull you out when I need it done, okay? Great!"

And with his last words said, Flippy left Handy to cry and lay against a cold corner in a dark basement, listening to the sounds of footsteps slowly walk upwards and out of the room.

The light was the last thing his eyes would get to see, before the pure darkness of the abyss returned and consumed him in the cold room for the remaining moments of his life.

* * *

 _ **Author's Note: Here's a good tip to write down: never get in the way between Flippy and his darling Flaky. Otherwise, you'll end up with poor Handy right here!**_

 _ **But oh my, it seems Flippy's obsession for Flaky is growing violently, and is already beginning to hurt (and kill) others just to have Flaky for himself! What will happen if Flaky finds out (or if she ever does), and what will happen to the other Tree Friends that get near her?! Whatever it is, it'll probably end up bloody!**_

 _ **Again, apologies for the long late for this chapter, but I really hope you all enjoyed it! Please leave a review and tell me what you think, favorite/follow if you enjoyed the story this far, and thank you all so much for reading!**_

 _ **Oh, and, as a final note for everyone reading this weekend:**_

 _ **HAPPY EASTER!**_


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

 _ **Author's Note: 3 months... it's been nearly three months since I have last updated this fiction. Honestly, I have only myself to blame and I have to apologize once more for the agonizing wait, especially since I've been getting so much loving support from all of you! During this time I've had to complete finals for college (passed all of them!), and have been doing numerous request works over on my account at DeviantArt (under HTFan95), that I got sidetracked. But now that I've been in the middle of summer break now (been amazing so far), I've had plenty of time to finally jump back in and right up the next chapter! I seriously hope the long wait didn't ruin my cool, though; this story is so exciting to write and I want to make sure you guys continue to enjoy every word!**_

 _ **Now, without any further hesitation, here is, finally, Chapter 5!**_

* * *

"Order up! Table five's order ready!"

"Alright, I'm coming Petunia!"

"Flaky, we got customers waiting at the counter who need seating!"

"Can't you take care of that, Giggles?"

"Flaky, we got a mess at table three!

"Y-Yes, sir, I'm on it!"

There was never a moment Flaky could recall having her feet lay and rest for even a brief second. Today's business activity was booming, a full house of customers taking practically every table. And despite next to no seating available, customers would still line up at the door eagerly awaiting a seat. It was rare for days like this to occur on a workday for just a small café in the center of town, but today was a major exception.

Flaky just could not find a single second to relax, even around break time. Perhaps becoming a waitress for Pop's Café was not the brightest of ideas, though already being a week into living in her new home, there had to be some income flowing in if she intended to stay in town. Plus, it was easier for her friend Giggles to suck up to the boss and land Flaky and job with barely any hassle of searching for one.

It wasn't an extravagant career choice, but for now, it paid the bills and kept her safe in her home, which was enough for her.

As Flaky repeatedly moved from table to table, going to the counter and back to give customers seats and work alongside Giggles to deliver meals, she looked over her shoulder shyly over to her boss. Pop, a middle-aged man spending his golden years as a simple store manager, kept his eyes on his new employee, making sure she was up to the task. If there was one thing on Flaky's mind, it was that she had to make every right move today; she needed this job.

Hurrying around frantically to accomplish every given command, her fear of failing any second was getting to her mind. Sure the customers gave nice remarks for her service, but what if they were just saying that? What if she was serving bad food that customers disliked? What if she wasn't friendly enough? What if her uniform was dirty and her long red hair not brushed in a clean appearance?

Flaky was suddenly stopped when a hand reached out and grabbed onto her shoulder, making her jump and shriek silently in surprise. She turned her head back slowly, fearing her boss was standing behind her. A soft sigh of relief came out as she noticed it was simply her friend Giggles, giving her a reassuring smile.

Giggles patted and brushed down the top of Flaky's simple waitress uniform, giggling lightly as she looked at Flaky with a smile. "Flaky, relax, you're doing great! We're serving a lot of customers today and you're doing an excellent work under such pressure, especially for a new employee!"

Flaky blushed lightly as she brushed back her hair. "R-Really?"

Giggles nodded her head. "Of course! I'd say you're better than I was on my first week! Really, when the work week is done, I'm sure Pop's going to give you an excellent score on the job! Besides, I'll still put in a few good words to help you a bit; your close friend Giggles is here every step!"

Flaky smiled as she nodded her head to Giggles. "Thank you so much, Giggles! I really appreciate what you're doing for me here."

"Hey, no problem!" Giggles turned to look behind her and pointed her right index finger to the counter near the kitchen. Lying on top of the counter was a table's order ready to be sent out, freshly cooked and ready to eat. "Petunia just got finished with another order. You want to take this one? You… might actually want to do this one."

A little confused at why Flaky should be the one to do this particular order, and actually WANT to do it to start with, Flaky nodded her head in agreement and went over to the counter. Picking up the plate, which contained a usual assortment of breakfast items such as eggs, sausage and other basics, Petunia gave a strict direction to table six where the order was to be sent.

Without wasting time, Flaky carefully marched through the busy restaurant carrying the meal. Though a few instances would occur that would have made her lose her balance and drop the perfectly cooked food, Flaky successfully made it to the specific table. Before placing the food down, she noticed it was simply a lone man, whom she could not see due to the large newspaper blocking his face.

Making sure to keep a happy smile for the customer, Flaky took the man's plate and rested it carefully on the table in front of him. "Sorry for the wait, sir. We're rather busier than usual today. Is there anything else I can get you, sir?"

"Actually you can. Why don't you have the lovely redhead take a much needed break and sit right next to me. It would make this meal so much better to have a lovely view to see."

Flaky froze for a second, her eyes widening as she looked down at the man. While the man's odd request made her somewhat curious, it was not the reason why she stood her ground. It was the man's deep tone of his voice, a familiar tone that she swore she heard from one man before.

Before she could respond, the man lowered his newspaper and folded it carefully, laying it aside on top of the table. The man then cleared his throat, and slowly looked upward to Flaky with a warm and gentle smile.

"Good morning, Flaky. It's great to see you again!"

Flaky stood in awe of what she was seeing in front of her. The green strands of hair, those beautiful dark green eyes, that familiar military attire, and the deep and mature voice coming through his lips. There was only one man that could fit those features.

"Flippy? Is that you?!"

Flippy let out a silent chuckle as he leaned back on his seat. "Wow, almost thought you wouldn't recognize me a minute there. I know I made a few changes, but I didn't expect it would fool you that easily."

And it almost certainly did. Flaky could barely make out the old Flippy from the one sitting in front of her. His hair was trimmed and combed, his face looked lively and well, and his clothes appeared brand new. It was like a complete transformation was made on him; an entirely new Flippy.

At least from what she saw on the outside.

Flaky smiled widely as she gestured to the new look of Flippy. "Did you seriously do all of this over the weekend?"

Flippy nodded his head swiftly. "Hey, you did say that in order for me to present myself better to people I should clean myself up first. So I freed up some time on my schedule and got myself an entire makeover here. I think it looks good on me, don't you think?"

Flaky held her wide smile as she blushed lightly, feeling surprised and joyful that he actually took her advice so easily. Her face became redder as Flippy gestured her to sit down beside him. Looking around quickly to see if she wasn't being watched, Flaky carefully sat down beside him, looking away shyly for a brief second.

Brushing down her uniform, Flaky turned her head to face Flippy. "I'm really happy to see you go through so much work so fast, Flippy! You really look like an entirely new person. Has anyone else noticed?"

Flippy looked down at his lap with a blank stare, sitting in deep thought on how to answer her question. He shrugged his shoulders as he continued to look down. "Um… at least better than before. It's not like they can't tell who I am since I'm practically the only guy in town wearing a military BDU and pants like everyday clothing. They don't have a disgusted look on their faces… but I know they still have thoughts of what kind of person I can be…"

A feeling of sadness rested over Flaky. A lot of progress was made on his looks, though it seems it would take further work in order to make him a likeable person in the town again. Thinking of a way to cheer him up, Flaky brought back her smile as she rested her left hand onto his.

"Hey, it's a start, right? Now all we have to do is work on how you act around others. If you can show yourself being a proper gentleman, people will change their mind. Trust me, we just have to work a little bit more, but it will turn out fine in the end. Just keep listening to me and I'll help you."

Flippy smiled at Flaky, wrapping his right arm around her and bringing her in for a hug. As a surprised and shy look appeared on her face, Flippy nodded his head happily. "Thanks a lot for this, Flaky. It means a lot." After holding a brief hug, Flippy brought his arm away from Flaky and rested it on the table. "So Flaky, I see you got yourself a job here?"

Flaky brushed her hair back while giving a quick nod to Flippy. "Yeah, Giggles was nice enough to talk to Pop and help get me a job here. I couldn't stay here forever not working, and this was one of the few jobs only available. It's not… glamorous… and there's a lot of work, but it puts bread on the table."

Flippy let out a quiet chuckle as Flaky rested her head on her right hand. "So what were you doing over the weekend, besides cleaning yourself up?'

There was a sudden silence between them, Flippy closing his mouth and staring blankly at Flaky. Flaky sat up straight while looking at Flippy worriedly, feeling as if she asked an offensive question. Flippy didn't respond for a short time, only giving an emotionless stare.

He suddenly let out a smile and looked down at his meal, bringing his arms over to prepare to enjoy his fresh food. "Oh, nothing much. I… met up with… an old friend of mine and settled a few things after a long time apart. I also did a little house cleaning as well. Other than that, nothing of importance happened besides getting myself a new set of clothing here. The Army had a large surplus of them and a deal for veterans, so I ordered them instantly."

Flaky nodded her head slowly, looking at Flippy with a curious look. "I see… well Flippy, I- "

Her attention was suddenly brought away from Flippy and over to the table across from them, where an old man accidentally spilled over his drink and onto the floor. Flaky quickly got up from her seat and walked over towards the man, who looked up with an embarrassed look on his face.

"Oh, I'm so sorry ma'am! I'll- "

Flaky shook her head with a smile, pulling out a thick cleaning cloth from her uniform pocket. "It's alright sir, mistakes happen."

Looking down at the wet mess on the floor, Flaky bent over and began to wipe it up with the cleaning cloth, completely oblivious to Flippy sitting behind her. Though he initially kept his eyes on his meal, an emerald glow began to emit from his irises. He looked over to Flaky lying next to him, a perverted smile forming along his lips as he caught a good glimpse of her posterior.

Without her hearing, Flippy began to mutter to himself silently. "Oh yeah, that's right, you bend over so I can see that fine ass of yours. I bet you would look real nice in one of those sexy looking maid uniforms. Have you dress up and call me Master, cleaning up the mess I'll make for you. And you would enjoy it too…"

Flaky's ears perked up as she heard a faint sound. She slowly turned her head around and noticed just briefly Flippy turning his head away swiftly, acting as if he was enjoying his meal. Her face instantly turned red as she noticed her position beside him, and quickly got up to her feet with an embarrassed look on her face.

Without saying another word, she bowed her head towards the old man and Flippy and walked as fast as she could away from Flippy, trying her best not to blush. Hoping to hide from the other customers, Flaky ran straight for the kitchen in the back, where Petunia was taking a short break with no orders coming up, sighing while looking at her phone.

As Flaky burst through the kitchen, Petunia looked up sharply in surprise. "Flaky! What's wrong, did someone do something to you out there?! Was it one of those perverted pigs? Because I'll go out there now and deal with them!"

Flaky shook her head instantly, brushing her uniform down as she calmed down. "N-Nothing! N-Nothing is wrong. J-Just a… oh, it's nothing…"

Petunia shrugged her shoulders as she looked back at her phone. "If you say so, girl. If you say so…"

The depressed tone of Petunia's voice caught Flaky's attention. Looking up at her, she noticed an upset expression on her face as she sighed while looking at her phone. Petunia proceeded to turn her phone off, shaking her head sadly.

Flaky took a step forward to stand besides Petunia, and rested her arm on her shoulder. "Hey, Petunia, what's wrong?"

Petunia didn't look up towards Flaky, and instead let out another depressing sigh. "I… haven't heard from him from a while. He normally talks at least once a day, or respond to my texts, but this weekend he was completely silent. He didn't even tell me before if he was busy or not."

Flaky tilted her head in confusion. "Well… perhaps something came up and he was just too busy that he forgot to respond back to you."

Petunia instantly shook her head, still keeping her head down while leaning against the counter. "No, he's not like that. He has never done that before. Besides, one of his construction buddies came here one morning just to order something small, and I asked him if they knew where he was. He said they had no clue and they were going to fall behind schedule on their project if he didn't show up soon. If there is one thing I knew about him, is that he'd never abandon a project; it was just his thing."

Construction? A man involved in construction work leading projects? The description of Petunia's lover and his line of work was awfully familiar. Curious about the man, Flaky placed her right hand on her chin and spoke calmly. "What… what was his name, Petunia?"

Petunia kept her head down for a moment, remaining perfectly silent. After closing her eyes briefly and letting out another sigh, she looked up to Flaky and gave her a blank look.

"Handy. His name was Handy."

Flaky's heart suddenly skipped a beat. Everything around her went silent as the name echoed in her head. _Handy_. The handless construction worker she met just a few days ago at the park. A happy and joyful man that enjoyed his career.

And now… he was gone… just like that? Even after being given a recent project… he just vanished? The thought of it made Flaky both curious and terrified, a cold feeling crawling down her spine. Certainly he was just gone or left the town for a while…

Right?

Flaky remained in a blank emotionless stance, her eyes staring at nothing as her mind wrapped around the name Handy. Blinking slowly and returning back to reality, she shook her head and looked back up to Petunia, who was placing her phone back into her pocket and walking back to the kitchen counter.

Not knowing what to say, Flaky decided to stand by Petunia and tried to find a way to calm her down. "Hey, Petunia… I'm… sure he has a reason and perhaps is just out of town for a while. Maybe there was a project he forgot that he had to perform away from town?"

Petunia remained silent, almost beginning to shed a tear. Flaky knew she was not going to believe her story. If Handy really was a man in love with his job, then he would never pass up the recent offer to work on the park.

After brushing her long and clean blue hair back, Petunia perked herself up and turned her head to face Flaky. "You know, I'm sure he is alright. Maybe he is just busy with other things right now. He'll call back one day and go straight to work on that project!"

Flaky could hear the sound of forced joy in Petunia's voice, but continued to act normally and give Petunia a friendly smile. Petunia breathed in slowly and happily, letting a small grin show on her face while speaking with a joyful tone.

"So, Flaky, how has your time being in Happy Tree Town going? Giggles hasn't told me much about you aside from just coming here recently. Has everything been going smoothly?"

Flaky looked away from Petunia for a moment, letting out a shy chuckle while looking down at her feet. "It was… different from home, certainly. I did get used to the many friendly people and the town itself, and my home is really nice and I enjoy it very much. It was a little rough at first, but I feel as time goes on things will get better as I stay here. I mean, Giggles already got me a job here, so it's been going easier than I thought it would."

Petunia made a wide grin and nodded her head to her. She then noticed a curious look showing on Flaky's face and leaned in closer to her. "What's wrong?"

Flaky let out a soft chuckle before turning to face Petunia. "It's just… why is it only… us girls working at the café? Out of all the people in this town, Pop hires only girls to work here. Doesn't that… I don't know…"

Petunia looked down with a shy smile before pointing out to the crowd occupying the many seats inside the café. "Well, one thing is for sure… it brings in a lot of customers."

Taking a close look outside to the interior of the café, Flaky blushed in embarrassment as she noticed the majority of customers appeared to be male. Even if the food was high quality or not, perhaps the patrons were not here just for the food.

Noticing her embarrassed blush, Petunia patted Flaky on the back with an amused laugh. "Hey, at least it brings in decent tips, right?" Flaky couldn't make the same joyful smile as Petunia could. "Anyway, it's great that you're getting along just fine in town, Flaky. Anything in particular that really stood out in your first few days here?"

Flaky's blushed redden, looking away from Petunia shyly as she fiddled with her fingers. "W-Well… Giggles did show me someone… one of my neighbors, actually…"

Petunia rolled her eyes as she placed her left hand on her hip. "Of course she would go off and do that. She does that to every new woman that shows up to this town. Who did she introduce to you this time?"

Flaky's blushed lighten up as she looked over at Petunia. "His name is Flippy. You know, that retired vet- "

Petunia instantly went into a worried and frantic state, covering up Flaky's mouth as he eyes widened instantly. "She introduced you to HIM?! That man?!"

Her voice being muffled, Flaky instantly brushed away Petunia's hand from her mouth and gave a confused look to her. "What's wrong?! Are you really scared of him too, Petunia?"

Petunia looked down for a moment, a rather depressed and guilty expression showing on her face. "Well… only a little… not as much as most people at least. But he just has this… aura around him that just makes feel uneasy."

Flaky was curious of Petunia's disposition of Flippy, though not surprised either. The questionable fear of him seemed to be a common trait, if a bit saddening one. Though even she knew that her thoughts were the same once… maybe even still.

Still having a guilty shy look on her face, Petunia looked up to Flaky slowly. "It's nothing personal or anything… in fact… sometimes I feel sad for him then I am scared."

Petunia's response was a surprise to Flaky. Petunia was the first person besides Giggles she heard actually say feeling sad for Flippy rather than fearing him. Baffled, Flaky tilted her head with a confused expression. "What do you mean by that?"

Remaining silent for a brief second, Petunia looked out the kitchen window to look out to the large cluster of customers at their tables. With a keen eye, she spotted out Flippy sitting out his table enjoying his meal. "That's Flippy there, right?"

Flaky looked outside the window to notice Flippy, and nodded her head in acknowledgement. "Did he change like that, just for you?"

Blushing lightly, Flaky looked down while shrugging her shoulders. "Well… I told him if he wanted people to like him more, the first thing he should do is try to look nice for once. I'm surprised he actually went through it so fast."

Petunia nodded her head, continuing to look out and keep her eyes on Flippy. "That was honestly sweet of him… it's been some time since I've ever seen him look so clean… and even a little happy like that… it makes me feel bad why I feel so afraid of him."

Still confused by the constant fear of him, Flaky took a step closer to Petunia and placed her right hand on her shoulder. "Was everyone so afraid of him when he came back?"

Turning her head to face Flaky, Petunia shook her head. "You mean when he came back from the war unannounced? Not really… people had their suspicions of why, and he did look… different… but honestly, more people felt sad for him then they feared him, even me. I mean, he looked so hurt… and he got mad so easily sometimes when people tried to talk to him… so we felt it was best to give him some space. We still had people that would make up stories as him being a monster over there which brought him back, Handy would tell me all the time, but others just wished him to feel better."

Hearing Petunia's story of Flippy only made her feel worse about her first reaction to him. If Flippy really was just a hurt and wounded soul, then being afraid of him was only making his pain worse. What he needed was people to be there for him to help heal his pain, but was instead being left alone. It had to be tragic for him.

Before Flaky could respond, Petunia gave a small smile to her. "But, while I am a little concerned for you Flaky… and I don't necessarily see it as the safest thing to do... I think you're doing a nice thing for him. Maybe if you hang around with him long enough, perhaps you could be the one to finally fix him up straight. What he needs is a good friend to help him up. Just… stay safe, Flaky. I don't want to lose you too this early."

While Flaky was feeling joyful with Petunia's initial words, her last sentence was somewhat frightening in a way to her. "Lose me too? What do you mean by that?"

Petunia looked away for a moment, knowing well she said something wrong. She closed her eyes and let out a soft sigh, turning her head to face Flaky again. "Well… to be honest, Flaky… you're not the first one to be in this kind of situation before."

Flaky took a step back from Petunia, her eyes opening widely in shock. She cleared her throat before speaking with a light stutter. "N-Not the first? You mean there was someone else being with Flippy?"

There was a brief pause between the two before Petunia spoke up clearly. "Looking at everything right now… with Flippy dressing up nicely again… being a little happier… and enjoying life with another woman… it just brings back my thoughts when Lammy used to live here."

"Lammy? Who's Lammy?"

"Lammy was…" Petunia's eyes suddenly opened widely, her mouth dropping and letting out a shocked silent gasped. Her body shook a little as her eyes were looking out the kitchen window, tensing up in sheer terror.

Noticing the odd tension Petunia was building up, Flaky spoke up while tapping on Petunia's shoulder. "Petunia, hey, tell me who Lammy was. Was she a past friend of Flippy? Did she live near him? What did she do with him?"

Petunia blinked slowly, her head unable to turn and look at Flaky. "Lammy… was just an old friend, and that's it. No need to know more about her, okay? Now, Flaky, I think you've taken a long enough break. You should go out and keep dealing with customers now."

"But Petunia, I- "

Petunia turned her head sharply back to Flaky, making her startle and jump back slightly. "Flaky, get back to work now. We'll talk some other time!"

Something felt completely off about Petunia's sudden change in attitude, and was slightly offended on her not answering her small question. Despite it, Flaky brushed down her uniform and nodded her head to Petunia before proceeding to walk back out to continue her work.

And, as Flaky walked off back into the crowd of customers, Petunia could only hide behind the kitchen counter for safety as she looked out the window.

Seeing two ominous glowing emerald eyes staring back at her.

* * *

The rest of the work day went by as usual. After Flippy left shortly after eating his meal, it seemed the rest of the day was smooth sailing. The rush died down a notch, and Flaky, Giggles and Petunia were able to perform all of their duties in the small café efficiently. Flaky was the gladdest with the reduced traffic, her legs nearing a breaking point after a long day's work.

As the three were beginning to close up shop for the late evening, Flaky helping clean up some of the messy tables, she could hear the sturdy voice of an old man calling her name.

"Flaky, can I see you for just a second."

Flaky swallowed her throat as she turned around to see a middle-aged man, wearing a thick red bathroom robe and a pipe being held in his left hand. His face was showing his age, and the top of his head was balding, but nonetheless still looked healthy and able to work.

While her heart was beating with fear, she turned her head to her friends, noticing their reassuring smiles that she would be okay. Nodding her head towards them, Flaky got up and marched quickly over to the old man, standing tall at attention in front of him. "Yes, Pop, sir?"

Pop chuckled lightly as he gestured his right hand to calm down. "Oh don't be so formal like, Flaky. You're not in trouble or anything. Actually, quite the opposite."

Before Flaky could ask a question, Pop reached out his right hand for a soft handshake. "I was a tad skeptical listening to your friend to just take in someone with little knowledge of, but you were able to handle yourself just fine these first couple of days. I think you're going to be a great addition here, Flaky."

Flaky was smiling happily as she looked behind her to see once again the reassuring cheerful smiles of Petunia and Giggles, walking up to stand beside her. Turning back to face Pop, she reached her hand out to feel the old rough hand, grasping it lightly to give a firm handshake.

"Thank you so much, Pop! I promise to keep working hard while I'm here!"

Pop closed his eyes as he nodded his head with a smile. "Glad to hear it, Flaky. Now, let's- "

The sound of bell ringing and the front door opening silenced Pop's response, and grabbed the attention of the four workers in the café. They turned their heads to the door, noticing a tall male figure standing and looking down at them. His body was shrouded with a dark layer as the sun was casting its rays behind him.

Pop dropped his smile and spoke with a serious tone in his voice. "I'm sorry sir, we've just closed up shop for the day."

"Oh don't worry, I'm just here to pick someone up from work."

The strong voice from the man already told Flaky it was none other than Flippy, coming back to the café once again. As Flippy walked into the café further, his body and clothing was more visible, his hair clean and a bright smile on his face. Flaky and Giggles gave him a welcoming smile, with Pop standing tall with a serious expression.

Petunia, instead of smiling, moved her body to stand behind Giggles a little back, trying to avoid as much attention as possible.

As Flippy stood in front of Pop, Pop took a close observation of Flippy, examining up and down his clean military clothing. "You seem familiar, sir. Have I seen you before?"

While Pop waited for an answer, Flippy could not pull his eyes away from Pop's hand grasping onto Flaky's hand. The old man's hand was resting on the soft touch of Flaky's, taking hold of her. The longer he stared at it, the more it seemed to make him tense up, his eyes transitioning colors from a peaceful green to an eerie emerald yellow.

With a deeper voice than usual, Flippy looked straight at Pop. "Flippy. I'm Flippy."

Pop dropped his jaw in amazement, letting go of Flaky's hand and examined Flippy one last time. "Well I'll be damned! I almost didn't recognize you for a bit with that new getup of yours here. It's been a long time since I've seen you out with such a clean look! But it's great to see you up and about, sir!"

Flippy stared back with an expressionless face, looking back down to see Pop reaching his right hand out for a gentlemen's handshake. Flippy slowly brought his right hand out as well, meeting it with Pop's older hand. They grasped each other firmly, performing a tight handshake.

Pop, though, began to cringe a little as the handshake seemed to be tightening up on his feeble hand. Flippy, continuing to stare straight into Pop's eyes, proceeded to squeeze tighter on Pop's old hand, his strength beginning to crush the weak bones in Pop's hands.

Almost reaching to a point of breaking Pop's hands, Flippy decided to let his grip come off from him, letting Pop shake his painful hand with a forced grin. "Wow! Even after your time off the service, you sure never lost any bit of your strength!"

Flippy shrugged his shoulders as his eyes remained locked on Pop. "Well… you never know when you'll face another challenge in your life. And the one who is stronger stands a better chance of surviving."

"Yeah, you've got a point there. Sadly, for me, this old man just doesn't have the strength like he used to." After shaking his right hand one last time, he placed it inside one of his pockets and gave a friendly smile to him. "So, which of the lovely ladies here are you taking back?"

The emerald glow suddenly was erased, and the cheerful dark green returned. His voice lightened up and his body loosened as he turned to face Flaky. "I'll just be walking back with the lovely woman here."

Flaky blushed lightly, looking away shyly as Giggles patted her on the back as a sort of congratulations. Pop chuckled as he looked back and forth between Flaky and Flippy. "Well do make sure she returns safely back at home. Don't want to lose a great worker so early!"

While Flaky continued to smile with a blush on her face, Flippy came over to wrap his right arm around her, pulling her close beside him. The feeling of his strong arm resting on her and being near him was turning her face as red as her own hair, looking down at her feet shyly.

Flippy chuckled at the sight of her blush. "Don't worry, I'll make sure she returns safely." He looked up to Pop and the others, looking at them with a joyful smile on his face. He gave a short wave as he began to escort Flaky out the café. Pop and Giggles waved and said their farewells as Flaky looked and waved back. Petunia only continued to watch her leave carefully.

The two friendly neighbors walked side to side each other taking a slow stroll on the sidewalk. While they remained silent, they were able to enjoy the late evening glow of the warm sun, and the silence of the town with the wind blowing calmly in the air.

To break silence, Flippy turned his head to face Flaky. He stared at her shortly, a light blush visible on his cheeks as he rubbed the back of his neck. "So, Flaky, I was thinking this weekend we could try going out somewhere different this time. I felt like out first time walking out… was not exactly the best. So maybe… if you're not busy, we could go out again."

Flaky looked up to Flippy and gave a warm smile to him. "Sure, I'd love that. It would also be the perfect moment to help you work on being good in public, show others you are a proper gentleman and a good person."

Flippy let out a silent chuckle as he looked back down the sidewalk. "Yeah, I'm sure it will be fun…"

The rest of the walk to their homes remained silent, though it did not bother the two the last time they had walked together. It was tranquil and peaceful, Flippy looking sharp and new while Flaky felt more at ease by his side than the first day.

But despite the silence, Flaky's mind was incredibly active. Every other second or so, her mind would bring up that mysterious name. _Lammy_. It was the first time she had heard the name, and she had no clue who the person was or what reason made them leave.

And exactly how she had some kind of relation to Flippy.

She wanted to know more of this Lammy, though from Petunia's attitude and shift in tone this morning, asking her would bring nothing new up. So what about Flippy? If this Lammy was with him, perhaps he should know plenty about her. It wouldn't hurt to ask about another friend, right?

Flaky then took a minute to rethink of asking him. Should she really just jump in and ask about a person she has no relation with? Would it be rude to just ask about a past friend that no longer lives in town? Is it something he's even willing to go over with, if she was indeed a friend of his?"

No matter how hard she tried to fight herself with reasonable excuses, her curiosity finally bested her. Flaky looked up to Flippy, and spoke in a calm tone. "Hey, Flippy, there's something I want to ask you."

Flippy looked down at Flaky and gave her a gentle smile. "What is it, Flaky?"

"Do you know about a person that went by the name Lammy here?"

As Flaky's mouth uttered out her question, the world around her and Flippy fell dead silent and motionless. Their movements seized and now stood perfectly still on the sidewalk alone. Flaky looked directly at Flippy, who only returned a blank expressionless stare back at her.

The eerie silence was beginning to worry and scare Flaky. Flippy refused to answer her question and remained silent, giving her this ominous dark yet blank look. His eyes remained their usual dark green, but his silence made Flaky shiver with anxiety.

Flaky then noticed Flippy lean in closer to her face, making her take a small step back. Her eyes widened as she continued to look at the blank stare from Flippy. The sound of her heart beating faster was noticeable to her, feeling each beat against her chest.

After a long stare down, Flippy finally opened his mouth and spoke with an oddly calm tone. "What was that name you just said?"

Without hesitating, Flaky nodded her head as she tried to remain calm. "L-Lammy. I said her name was Lammy. Do you know her?"

Unlike the previous moment of standing in silence, Flippy stood up tall with his back straight. He took in a deep breath, and turned his head to face away from Flaky. "Yes, I knew her. She was a friend, a good friend, a long time ago. She was here one day, and now she's not. She is of no importance anymore and I wish not to speak of her again."

Flaky nodded her head swiftly as her body relaxed from the fearful anxiety. "Yes, I understand Flippy. I won't bring her up again."

"Good…" Flippy pointed his right index finger down the sidewalk they stood on, pointing to a couple of houses nearing the end. "Your house is just right there. You should make it there just fine without me."

Flaky gave a confused look at Flippy, tilting her head while looking at a rather serious Flippy. She wanted to say something in response, but could not find the words to say. Instead, she nodded her head towards Flippy and placed a smile on her face, even if it was forced a little.

Walking ahead of Flippy for a moment, she came to a sudden halt as she felt his hand grab onto her left shoulder. The unexpected grasp made her jump and turn around instantly, looking at the serious expression of Flippy's face. "Y-Yes, Flippy?"

"Where did you hear that name, Flaky? Just curious how you came to hear it."

Flaky was afraid of being asked where she heard about Lammy. She didn't want to rat out Petunia as being the culprit of telling her about Lammy, though it would be hard to make up a decent lie if she was at work all day. Thus, Flaky thought up a generalized answer to keep Petunia safe, if only a little.

With a shrug of her shoulders, Flaky brushed back her hair as she made a fake laugh. "Oh, just overheard it from someone at work today. Probably just some random customers talking about her or something. Can't really tell who it was."

Flippy nodded his head slowly as he looked down at his feet. "At work today? I see… you sure you have no clue at all who would mention her?"

"Yep, I have zero idea who said it. I just recall hearing the name and I was only wondering if you knew her."

"I see…" Clearing his throat, Flippy stood up straight and took a step closer to Flaky. He gave her a warm smile and opened his arms out for a friendly hug. "Well, it was good meeting you again, Flaky! I enjoyed this nice walk with you and I really look forward to our time together this weekend."

A little skeptical at first, Flaky decided to return the gesture by giving a happy smile to Flippy and hugging him tightly. "It was good meeting you too, Flippy. And I too look forward to this weekend as well!"

Holding their hug for a few seconds, the two broke apart and began to walk their separate paths. After a few steps, though, Flaky turned around to see Flippy going the direction leading back into town where they came from. "Hey, Flippy, where are you going?"

Flippy let out a hearty chuckle as he waved goodbye to Flaky, not turning his head back. "Oh I'm just going to take care of something I forgot to do back in town. Won't take long. I'll see you later, Flaky. Have a good night!"

Flaky kept her eyes on Flippy as he continued to walk back into town. After watching him walk far off into the distance, she turned around and marched back to the comfort and safety of her home.

Whatever Flippy had planned back in town, it couldn't be anything worth worrying about.

Right?

* * *

 _ **Author's Note: Oh boy, more mysterious history being revealed about Flippy, and more questions being raised! Who's this Lammy person and what did she have to do with Flippy? And what does Flippy plan to do on his way back to town (as if you guys need to think hard on that one... or maybe you do, who knows, Flippy can do whatever the hell he wants for his beloved Flaky)? Whatever it is, I'm sure it'll be a lovely surprise for everyone (if they can survive it, of course)!**_

 _ **Anyways, again I must apologize for a near three month wait for an update. But I really hope this chapter has made it up, and I already got big plans of what I want to do down the line! For now, I thank every single one of my readers! Your follows, favs, and well-thought reviews all inspire me to keep pushing forward and I am glad to see you all enjoying it!**_

 _ **As always, please leave a review and tell me your thoughts, fav or follow if you're enjoying the story thus far, and thank you all for reading!**_


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